Into the sunset
by Clavyus
Summary: This begins when Lucas, Nathan, Haley and Jamie get to college. Lucas meets Maddie, and as their relationship deepens, it leads to a break up between Lucas and Peyton. Brooke becomes aware of it, and begins to question her reasons for breaking up with Lucas. Eventual Brucas endgame, mostly.
1. Chapter 1

A.N. This fic begins a couple of months after the end of the fourth season. Lucas meets Maddie in college. His relationship with Maddie deepens, and it leads to a break up with Peyton. These developments come to Brooke's attention, and she begins to question her reasons for breaking up with Lucas. The endgame is Brucas, mostly. I don't own OTH.

Into the sunset – Chapter 1

Clarksson College

It wasn't the first choice for any of us. First choice was UNC for me, Duke for Nate, Stanford for Hales and a comfortable retirement for Whitey. Instead, here we are, with three-month-old Jamie in tow, making the best of a screwed up situation. For Whitey, it was a job he never wanted, coaching a college team that hadn't seen a winning season in thirty years. For me, a scholarship as Whitey's assistant coach, the pursuit of a double major on sport science and literature and a long distance relationship with sexy, talented and temperamental Peyton. For my brother Nate, his last chance at the dream of playing competitive basketball. He will probably be the best freshman shooting guard in the NCAA, playing for a nothing team by virtue of poor choices, bad luck and his own brand of integrity. For Hales, the opportunity of keeping her family together while pursuing the modest dream of a teaching degree in American and English literature and supporting her husband's dream. A beautiful girl of incredible gifts, a talented and nationally recognized singer-songwriter, the valedictorian of our class, and my dearest friend. For all of us, a new beginning.

We've left Tree Hill bright and early, and we are arriving at the township of East Clarksson, on the hills of South-Central North Carolina four hours later. We are a little convoy composed of a large U-Haul truck containing most of our worldly possessions, my seventy-eight Mustang and Nathan and Haley, Naley for short, beat up old Honda. We park our convoy in front of a small white single-story house. It's an old house, and a little beat-up, with a tiny frontyard, a porch, a small living area with an open-plan kitchen, three bedrooms, one of them fairly large with an en-suite bathroom, two smaller bedrooms sharing the other bathroom, and an enclosed back porch, opening to a shaded area in the back. I'd come house hunting two weeks back, and found this house at reasonable price, about fifteen minutes on foot from the campus, a nice discount on rent, as I offered throw in some repair work on the house and a small park across the street, with children's toys and a sandbox.

As we stops, Haley picks up Jamie, who is awake and in a good mood, and takes him inside. We had placed most of the baby material in the trunk of the cars, as we knew that was first priority Get the baby installed. We put all of the baby stuff in the bedroom that was going to be the nursery, so that Haley could take care of Jamie, while we unloaded the heavy stuff. Next we planted an icebox with beer and sandwiches near the front door, took out our shirts, and got to work. We were pretty exhausted by the time we unloaded everything, and the sun was already setting. We pick up a couple of beers and sit on the curb in front of the house, happy for just a bit of quiet. That's when I notice what appears to be a young boy, blonde, wearing an old army jacket twice his size, gray sweat pants and converse sneakers sitting at a bench on the park across the street, and staring at our house. Being curious both by nature and following a writer's instinct for acquiring new material, I told Nate to head in for a shower, while I cross the street to speak to the boy.

As I come close, one thing becomes apparent. The boy is actually a tiny blonde woman, probably my age or a bit older. I find myself looking into a pair of bright blue eyes, clear as the sky, brimming with intelligence and a curiosity similar to my own. A second after our eyes met, she smiles at me, a friendly smile that makes me revise my initial impression about the girl. From ordinary pretty to outright beautiful. Of course, I can't help but smile right back.

"Hello, beautiful. My name is Lucas. Can I help you?"

She preened a bit, clearly pleased with my compliment.. Not shy. "I'm sorry, handsome. I'm Madeleine, but everybody calls me Maddie."

All right. Really not shy. "Thank you. Why did you apologize?"

"For staring. It's not really polite."

"No damage done." I sit next to her and stretch my legs. "But what were you doing?"

"It's mostly a game I play with myself. I observe and try to draw conclusions."

"In that case, it's an interesting activity. I certainly do it myself. Shall we trade observations?"

"Well, here are a few of mine. The three of you are freshmen at the college, moving in today. You and your male friend are some kind of serious athletes, probably basketball, and you two played together. Your friend is married to the brunette and the baby is theirs. The brunette is your sister.

How I am doing?"

"That is extremely impressive Maddie. Not perfect, but close enough to be scary."

"Tell me."

"Well, we are, in fact, freshmen moving in. My housemates are a married couple, with a three month old baby. He is my brother, but the brunette is my closest friend, and she certainly feels like a sister to me. My brother and I used to play basketball, he is here on basketball scholarship, and so am I, but I don't play anymore. Instead, I'm here as an assistant coach."

She smiles even more brightly. The pride of exercising a difficult skill. I like this girl. "Your turn."

The accent and her quicksilver mind help with some of the guesses. Covert observation under disguise suggests some of the rest. I also guess a tight wiry strength under the baggy clothes."You're from the west coast. Top of your class, sophomore here at Clarksson. Blue collar family, I'm guessing one of your parents is a cop. You are a serious athlete too. Gymnastics or track."

"You're pretty good too. I'm from Santa Barbara, and my father is, indeed a cop. Good job. I'm actually a freshman like yourself, but I've been taking part on a summer internship, so I've been here already for a couple of months. I am a serious athlete, but in martial arts. Regional titles in wrestling and a black belt in kickboxing. Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Yes. She is actually in LA."

"I have a boyfriend too, back in Santa Barbara. So, this invitation is purely innocent. Do you want to go grab a pizza? I'm in serious need of a friend, and you're the best prospect I've seen in the past couple of months."

"Absolutely. If I have to spend all my time with the lovebirds in there I'm going to go insane. I'd love a friend too. Let's go inside. I'll introduce you, grab a jacket and my wallet, and we're on our way."

"Nate, Hales, this is Maddie. She is a freshman too. These two are Nathan Scott and Haley James Scott, and the squirt is James Lucas Scott, my nephew, godson and the cleverest baby this side of the Mississippi.

"The name is Madeleine Ward, but Maddie is fine. It's very nice to meet you two." She frowns. "Haley James Scott... singer? When the stars go blue? Girl, if that's really you, I love that song."

That gets a big smile from Haley. "All right Luke, good job. This one is a keeper."

"We're going out for a pizza. It won't be long."

"Excellent job, big brother. Five minutes in town and you already have a date with a hot girl. I want to be you when I grow up." There's a slight note of disapproval in his voice. As it happens, Nate is also a former boyfriend and a very dear friend of Peyton. "By the way, did he tell you he is taken?"

"Yes he did. So am I, as a matter of fact. But, I might not mind a little cheating with the right boy." She winks at Nate. "Bye gorgeous. Bye Haley Scott.."

Haley's smile turns into a frown "Ok, Luke. Maybe not a keeper after all."

"C'mon sweetie, you don't want to keep all the goodies to yourself."

"That's fine girl.. You can have a go at blondie there, and take up any issues with a certain sarcastic lady currently in LA. I do suggest you keep your fingers away from the brunette. If you want to keep them, that is."

Maddie laughs, an infectious earthy laughter that contrasts a bit with her Tinkerbell physique. "It's a deal, Haley dear. With your permission, I'll take blondie here for a spin, and endeavor to keep my fingers."

Once outside, I ask her. "All right, Maddie, drive or walk?"

"Oh, walk. It's a beautiful night, and the pizza place is fifteen minutes away."

We walk slowly and in silence, enjoying the noise of the cicadas in the late summer night. She wears the silence comfortably.

"It's a very nice family, Luke. You're lucky."

"I know. They needed my help, and I'm happy I can be here for them. I think I need them too."

A pause. "Maddie."

"Yes, Luke?"

"Do you have any siblings?"

"No, I mean, actually, I don't know. I grew up a single child. My mother left when I was ten. She might have other children now, for all I know. What about you, aside from Nathan? You're twins, I assume."

"No, we are half brothers, same father, different mothers. I'm three months older. I grew up a single child, raised by my mother. I also have a baby sister, Lily, born the same day as Jamie."

"And your brother, who was not raised with you, ends up married to your best friend, and you are living with them. Wow. There must be quite a story there."

I can't avoid laughing. Of course, she gets a bit miffed. She wasn't really joking. I raise both my hands at her."I'm sorry Maddie. You are right on the money, as usual. There is quite a story there. As a matter of fact, I wrote a book about it. It's called "An unkindness of Ravens" and my girlfriend sent it to a bunch of publishers. I've got a few rejection letters, but, who knows?"

"An unkindness is a bunch of ravens, no?"

"That's right. The basketball team of our high school was called the Tree Hill Ravens. We won last year's North Carolina state title."

"Wow. That's a really big deal. Not even Jordan has that ring, no?"

This girl really knows the right thing to say. "You're right. His high school got the regional title when he was playing, but they didn't win state." I indulge on a bit of showing off. "Nate was the leading scorer on out team, but I made the three pointer at the buzzer which won us the title."

"And what's the leading scorer on last year's state champion team doing at Clarksson? Shouldn't he be at Duke, or UCLA? Another long story, I guess."

"It's all in the book. Do you want to read it?"

"Sure, I'd love to. Are you a good writer?"

"I'm an excellent writer, silly! What do you think? I'll make you a deal. I'll give you a print out of Ravens, but you're got to tell me everything about yourself."

She gives me a sly smile. "Not everything, handsome. Let's say, most things, instead."

There's a catch in her voice, or in her stance. I turn around, put my hands on her shoulders and look straight into her eyes. "You're very lonely, aren't you?"

She seems to shrink into herself, her eyes suddenly shining with tears. In a small voice, she answers. "Yes. You're the first person I've talked to in the past two months, beyond pleasantries. At first it was ok, even restful. But recently, it's become pretty excruciating"

I bring her in for a hug. She resists at first, but then something uncoils inside her, and she melts into my arms. She puts her arms around my me, pulling even tighter, and sobs softly against my chest.

She pulls back, and gathers herself, stepping back and looking me in the eyes. "I'm sorry..."

I cut her off. "There's nothing to apologize for, beautiful. Life is hard enough. Nobody should have to live without an occasional hug."

We continue to walk, but now I place my arm around her shoulders, while she wraps her arm around my waist, and rests her head against my chest. We get to the pizza place, and we sit across one another, ordering a plain cheese medium pizza, wings and soda. I keep hold of one of her hands. Her hands are delicate in shape, nails short and unpainted, strong and very rough. "Do you want to talk about it?"

She sighs. "Actually, I'd like to. Let me start with my dad. I told you my mother left when I was ten, right? He was pretty devastated when my mom left. We became very close, friends and partners, and I took care of him, cooked for him, cleaned and mended his clothes, gave him advice about his cases, and his relationships and he took care of me, drove me around, managed the accounts, payed the bills and meddled in my life. He has been my closest friend for a long time. Two months ago, I left home to come here.

Another stolen childhood. I don't know what's worse, a mother dying or voluntarily walking away. My guess, Maddy and Peyton would both willingly exchange her own story for the other's.

"Did you have any contact with your mother since? "

"No. I'm pretty sure my dad knows where she is, but he can be a seriously closed mouthed bastard when it suits him. I'm sure that any information he is withholding, he honestly thinks it is in my best interest."

"I see. Was he seeing someone when you left?"

"Yes, he has been in a relationship with this woman for over a year. She is very good to him, and, I guess, she is the reason I felt I could move away."

"You talk to him."

"Almost every day. But I lie. I tell him everything is wonderful. What would be the point of saying I'm lonely, sad and angry?"

"And you're afraid, because you know he could be doing exactly the same thing. And you don't want to get back there and check it out, because that wouldn't solve anything. I get it. So, now you lost your best friend. What about your boyfriend?"

"His name is Markus, Markus Raidan, but everyone calls him Mick. His father is a real state developer, who owns half of Santa Barbara. We've known each other since middle school, and he tells me he's had a crush on me forever. For a long time, I just didn't like him. He came across as a spoiled, entitled jackass. On the other hand, he is clever, has always been loyal to a fault, and, in the end, he has a big heart. He is tall, well built, he is a very good surfer and a rocket in bed. When we started high school, he and his friends would be constantly in trouble, screwing every skirt they could find, doing and selling drugs, stealing, beating people up, you know, the works."

"Sounds like a criminal version of my brother Nathan, before Haley." She looks at me, surprised. She begins to see how complicated my story might be.

"He and his boys got mixed up with some street gang, and things began to turn ugly. One of his boys was found shot in his car. My father caught the case, and soon realized that Mick was under serious risk of being killed as well. At one point, it looked like he was either going to get shot by this gang, or spend a long vacation in the state pen. I convinced my father that Mick was a basically decent guy, and that most of the uglier deeds associated with his boys were done without his knowledge. To make a long story short, my father convinced Mick into turning state evidence, and most of the real nasty guys on both sides are currently twiddling their thumbs behind bars. After this episode, Mick decided to mend his ways, and became a regular jackass in school, rather than a dangerous, criminal jackass. We started hanging out, one thing led to another. Suddenly I found I couldn't keep him out of my head, or my hands off him. We've been together for a year and a half now, less the two months I've been here. Dad really dislikes that I'm with Mick. He thinks Mick is irresponsible and self-destructive, and that his love for me is not enough to keep him in check. Trouble is, I know Mick enough to partially agree with my dad. But I spent too much of my life being the super-responsible girl. Mick is my escape. He is a fun, romantic bad boy that makes me feel incredibly alive."

"So, not exactly a friend either."

"Well, a kind of friend. If I kill somebody, I could count on him to help me hide the body, no questions asked. But not someone to have a heart-to-heart."

"Doesn't sound like someone you could sustain a long-distance relationship with."

"I know. I should have broken up with him before moving here. I keep expecting to hear that he did something stupid." It sounds to me that she is here, at least in part, running away from both her father and her boyfriend.

"What about other friends? Didn't you have someone?"

"Of course. But you see, I was always the strong, mature one. My friends brought me their problems. I helped them. My bestie is a martial arts jock, like me, who went into army special forces right after high school. Right now he is in boot camp somewhere in the Nevada desert. For some reason, I've never had many female friends."

"Well, beautiful, it seems that you do need a friend right now. And you got one, if you want. Whatever you need."

She gives me a sly look. "What if what I need is to get laid?" I think she is testing me, but I'm not sure.

"I'll buy you an airplane ticket, and you can go screw your boy toy Mick to your little sluttish heart's content."

She gives me a big smile. Testing. "Good answer, Luke. And a nice way with words."

"I'm a writer, girlie. Words are my tools."

She seems much more relaxed after getting all of that stuff off her chest. We are soon done, and after splitting the check, we leave back to the warm night, holding hands.

"Where do you live?"

"A couple of blocks from you. Why do you call me beautiful?"

"Well, you are."

"I most certainly am not."

I laugh. "All right, Maddie. Here is a glimpse into my thoughts. When I saw you across the street, I thought you were a young boy. I'm sure that's precisely the intention of your little stake out disguise. When I crossed the street, I saw you were a girl, small bodied, close to my age. I noticed that you were pretty too. When I got close, you looked me in the eyes and you smiled. That's when I thought to myself. Wow! Not pretty, beautiful. The word stuck in my mind."

She just stares at me. After a bit. "You can't be serious."

"You're beautiful, and you don't really know it. That, in itself, is pretty charming."

She mulls at that for a while. "Is your girl in LA beautiful?"

"Her name is Peyton. She is very beautiful, and she knows it too."

She holds our joined hands in the air a bit. "She wouldn't like what we are doing here."

"Now, that is an interesting point. What would she think? I'll tell you. It would depend on whether she liked you or not. You see, between, say, June last year, and April this year, we were just friends. I was head over heels in love, and then dating, her best friend Brooke. During that time, if we were walking together, like we are now, we would be holding hands, or I would have my arm around her shoulders. Some horrible things happened to her this year, so, sometimes, she couldn't sleep, and she would come over and sleep in my bed, just to feel safe."

"And this was fine with Brooke."

"Well, not quite. But Brooke accepted it. She knew her best friend and I had a close relationship, and that Peyton needed me too. So, bottom line, if Peyton thought you were some kind of skank trying to steal me from her, she would get more than a little upset. If she liked you, maybe she wouldn't like it, but she would accept it. She would also trust me to know the difference between a skank and a friend."

"And would she like me?"

"Depends on which song was playing when you met."

"What?"

I laugh. "You need to read the book. Then you'll get it."

We stop in front of a small house with a tree in front. "This is me."

"The hybrid is yours."

"Yup."

"So California girl... the color matches your eyes."

"That's what daddy said when he gave it to me." Am I anything like her father?

"Does your father play basketball and has an unhealthy fondness for cheerleaders?"

"One of the two. My father is five foot three, tubby, and he is a football fanatic. The forty-niners, to be precise. My runaway mother was the captain of her cheer squad in high school. My father is the smart dork that got the popular girl pregnant senior year and ended up marrying her." I get the picture. I even start getting the running away thing. She guesses what is on my mind.

"We did a paternity test, jerk. He really is my father." I don't think I ever met anyone who could read my thoughts the way this girl does. I change the subject a bit.

"So, even if it's in your blood, you wouldn't touch cheering with a ten foot pole."

"That's right, baby. She would hate what I do for fun too. Do you run?"

"Sure, three times a week, if I can."

"Let's go for a run tomorrow morning. Be at your doorstep at half past six. Four miles Ok?"

"Sure, I'll try to keep up."

"Before I forget, there's something I've got to tell you. Do you know about the rapist?"

"No, what rapist?"

"They've been trying to keep it low profile. There's been three incidents that the police knows about in the past six months. Three high school girls, walking alone late at night. The guy is middle aged, white, tallish and running to fat. None of the girls managed to get a good look at him. You and Nate should watch out for Haley walking alone at night."

"You be careful too."

"Don't worry, Luke. I can take care of myself."

I don't doubt that Maddie, but be careful anyways. It's been a great evening."

"Thanks, Luke. I've enjoyed it too. More than I can say. Bye."

I get into the house and Nate is standing in the kitchen, a glass of water in his hand. "Haley fell asleep while breastfeeding Jamie, about half an hour ago. I put Jamie in his bed, bathed and with a fresh diaper. We ordered chinese, and there's some leftover in the fridge."

"I'll take the middle of the night shift, little brother, but I'm going for a run with Maddie tomorrow morning, half past six."

"Can I join you guys? I need to find my way around here."

"Sure. I'm doing some job hunting tomorrow."

"Hales was also planning on doing the same, so I'll try to stay around the house. I unpacked the free weights and arranged them in a corner of the back porch. Did you enjoy your date with the hot girl? Given that you're running with her by dawn's early light, I assume it went... well?"

I look at my own shoes. Nate is crazy sharp and knows me too well. "Sure. She is pretty special, that one. You'll see."

"Be careful, big brother. You're a nice guy, but sometimes you seem to have the heart of a slut. Peyton doesn't deserve this, and, if this girl is a good one, she doesn't deserve to be lead on either."

"You know I can be friends with a pretty girl."

"I know, but you grew up with that one. You sure that the deal with Maddie is all that innocent?"

Actually, I'm pretty sure it isn't. "We're both in long distance relationships, and I don't think we have any intention of cheating."

"There are different kinds of cheating, Luke. I believe Haley never got into it with Chris, but I do think what she did was cheating, in some sense, and so does she."

"I hear you, little brother, and thank you. I think I was pretty upfront with Maddie." To be honest, I was not worried that I would seriously fall for Maddie, compelling as she is. There is only one girl I really want. In truth, if I close my eyes, and I ask myself which girl I would like to have in my arms, the answer hasn't changed in a long time. I know she is gone. And I really need to move on.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you for your reviews. As usual, I owe nothing associated with OTH, but Maddie is mine.

Chapter 2

I get back to the house at my own pace, after both Nate and Maddie disappeared ahead. The HCM medicine won't let me keep up with them anyways. Nate and Maddie are standing outside, Maddie looking smug, and Nate clearly out of breath.

"You crazy dog. You're two-timing Peyton with Supergirl."

"I'm not two-timing anyone, little brother. But I'm glad Maddie gave you a run for your money. The season is starting in a few weeks, and we gotta have our star player in shape."

Maddie just scowls at him. "Well, if you want to have a chance at a title this year, buster, you better start working out . You're gonna be hitting the ground in the fourth quarter, the way you are now."

"Lucas, she is channeling Dan now. I'm going inside, try to find some nicer people."

She turns her scowl to me. "What happened to you? You ran out of steam long before I would have expected."

I'm not sure I am ready to get into that with Maddie, but after yesterday, she does deserve the truth from me. "I have a heart condition called HCM. It's genetic, our father has it, and, thank goodness, Nate doesn't. I can exercise, keep in shape, even play basketball for fun. But I can't play competitive sports. I found out about it last year. The medication keeps my heart from beating too fast. That means I just get tired early."

I look into her eyes looking for pity, but all I see is sadness and a bit of anger. She comes up to me and touches my chest. "That blows."

"It sure does. But that's how it is with competitive sports, isn't it?. You put your whole heart into it, and one bad injury just takes it all away. Do you still compete?"

"Yup. I get into a mixed martial arts card now and then. Not often, because there's only a dozen odd girls competing in my weight class in the country. I'm eight and oh."

I can't keep the awe from my voice, "Supergirl, indeed."

"I never intended to make a living with it. Still, I don't know what I would do if it was taken away."

I sit on the sidewalk, thinking about loss, and she sits beside me. I put my arm around her shoulder, and she leans against me. It surprises me how comforting it is.

"I want to see you playing. Do you have a video of the championship game?"

"Sure. You know, like most things that happened in my life last year, there is a complicated background story around that game. I would really like you to read the book first. Then we can watch the game together. What do you say?"

"That's fine. Do you want to hang out again tonight?"

"Sure. What do you have in mind?"

"Just dinner and a movie. I'll cook. I'm pretty good."

"Any preferences as far as movies go?"

"What about something scary? I like scary movies, but I never watch them alone."

"Perfect. Say, seven?"

"That's fine. Bring some ice cream. Cookies'n Cream."

"I'll also bring the movie, and a bottle of wine. I have a fake ID. White or red?"

"Red. I'll be cooking meatloaf. With mashed potatoes and green beans. And pie for desert."

"Comfort food. Just the ticket. Do you need a husband?"

"Wait until you try it, silly, then you can propose."

Now, if that isn't a date, I don't know what that means anymore.

I go to half a dozen auto shops in town, until I find one that suits me. They are willing to start me at fifteen per hour, raising it to twenty five after three months if they like my work. I sign up for a minimum of sixteen hours per week, which, after the raise, will be enough for my share of the living expenses, plus some beer money. I'm pretty sure it was my car that got me the job. I go back home to kill some time with Nate, but Haley was already back too. She is going to waitress in a diner downtown. The hourly pay is shit, but, knowing Hales, she will make more money than me, just in tips. With the two of us working, we'll make enough money to cover rent and expenses. Nate will just focus on basketball, and do most of the daytime baby duty.

Earlier, I had e-mailed a copy of Ravens to a store for printing and binding. I picked it up on the way back, and I was still carrying it when I got home.

After we had reported to each other on the job situation, Haley notices I'm carrying a manuscript, and grabs it to take a look. "A copy of Ravens. Is that for Maddie?"

"Yup. She is cooking dinner for me tonight."

"You just met her yesterday. What's the deal between you and this girl?"

"She is special, Hales, and I don't really know why. For one, there is quite a bit of chemistry between us. I'm attracted to her, and she certainly behaves as if she was attracted to me as well. But it is not only that. She is very sharp, an incredible listener, and seems to have a great heart. If it wasn't for our long-distance people, I think we would soon be together. I am not intending to break up with Peyton over her. For one, that's not a good way to start something new. Despite that, I get the feeling she's going to be a big part of my life, at least as a friend for now."

"Then you're gonna have to bring her around. I want to get to know her better. I heard she whupped my husband's ass at running this morning. I was thrilled, having him taken down a peg by a girl. So, aside from being a super miniature jock, what's her deal?"

"I don't really know. I get the impression that she wants to be a cop. What I know is that she is really smart and, and a great listener. She is also terribly lonely here."

"I can see that she is good for you, bil. Just be careful. You've had enough girl trouble to last a lifetime."Do you mind taking care of stinky there? He could use a bath. I'm going for a bath myself, and I'll fix dinner. Anything you want? Nate went to the store, and should be back soon."

"I'm supposed to be at her place around seven."

"All right, I just want a full report about her reaction, to the book. Bring her over on Friday, for pizza and a movie, the four of us."

"Sure thing, sis. Just, instead of pizza, I'll cook dinner."

"All right. An offer I cannot refuse. I just hope she likes girlie movies."

I knocked on her door, and I just heard her shout to get in and come to the kitchen. I look around, and her place is a tiny one-bedroom, with a girl-jock, cop fanatic decor. There's a poster of Serena Williams, another one of Law and Order, trophies and medals, a picture of a younger Maddie with another girl fighter, the ref between them, holding her hand up. There's plenty of books, several of crime scene investigation, profiling, investigative techniques, plus, Harry Potter, the Hunger Games, the Twilight series, and old beat up copies of a Catcher in the Rye and Moby Dick.

She turned off the stove, and came to greet me. I gave her a single white rose, not too romantic, but suitable for a beautiful girl, which she placed in a little vase. I also gave her a bottle of Merlot, the copy of Ravens and a dvd of Aliens. She came close, and I had to stoop a bit, as she went on tiptoes to give me a peck in the cheek. She was wearing a Santa Barbara Police Department t-shirt, that reached mid thigh, barefoot. As far as I could see, that was it. She had these runner legs, every muscle shaped and defined.

"You don't have to be undressing me in your mind, Luke. I'll show you the whole thing, if you want. I'm quite proud of it. Four percent body fat. She puts her arms up, which raises the t-shirt until I can see the tiny jeans shorts she is using underneath, and spins around."

The minx bunches up her t-shirt and ties a knot on the side. Now I can also see her six-pack, and the muscles on her back. She's got curves too. A tiny waist, sexy dimples on her back, and the suggestion of a small, but very sweet pair of boobs.

"You know you're incredibly sexy, don't you?"

"Yup, if you like muscle on a girl, which you apparently do. You're the first boy to call me beautiful, but I've been called hot and sexy plenty of times. And I like showing off, so just put up with me."

I look at the amazing little package in front of me and smile. "I may need a cold shower tonight before bed."

"Oh, I have a date with a plastic friend later tonight. So, which first, movie or dinner?"

"I say dinner. I'm hungry, and the smells are really good."

"All right, set it up, as I finish dinner." I serve the wine, toss a salad and set up plates, candles and the little vase with the white rose at the center of her dining room table. We eat, drink wine, and talk, about growing up in Santa Barbara and in Tree Hill, about martial arts and about basketball. Maddie is sharp, intensely curious about everything and a great storyteller, with an eye for detail.

She tells me several stories about her father's cases, and about law enforcement in general, and I realize she tends to see the world in sharp contrasts of black and white, although her notion of right and wrong seems to be very personal. I argue that we live in a world full of moral ambiguities, where shades of gray are the norm. We end up discussing the ending of Steinbeck's "Of mice and men", one of my favorite novels.

"George had no choice in the matter. He knew how dangerous Lennie was, and what Curley had in store for him."

"There's always choice, beautiful. George had to live with having killed Lennie the rest of his days. I'm sure that didn't sit easy in his soul. Love, and life, often gives us hard choices, all of them wrong."

"Still, one's gotta do what is needed, even when it is hard, and then live with it."

"True. But the scars these choices leave behind eat away at your soul, don't they? I speak from experience, Maddie. There is one specific choice I made last year that still eats at my soul. We should get back to this conversation after you've read my book."

"That's fine Luke."

We finish eating dinner, and desert, keeping the conversation to lighter topics.

"Well, beautiful, that was outstanding."

"Thank you, handsome."

"So, do you need a husband?"

"Not at the moment. If need arises, you'll be the first to know."

"Thank you. So, the movie?"

"Let's take care of the clean up first."

In short order we rinse dishes and pots, place them in the dishwasher and put away leftovers in containers. Maddie grabs a big comforter and sits in her small couch, while I set the movie and turn off the lights. We snuggle up under the comforter. As the movie goes on, Maddie reveals herself the girliest of movie watchers. She squeals when surprised, hides her face in my chest when things get scary, and mutters to herself. I pay half attention to the movie, as I find the girl's proximity, her hair smelling of lavender and her tiny, hard toned, half naked body, quite distracting.

I guess I'll just enjoy that as part of the fun, for now.

"Well, handsome, That was fun."

"Had you seen it?"

"Sure. But it gets to me anyways."

"I had fun too. About the book, some pretty harsh stuff happens, and as you already know a few of the central characters, it's going to become pretty heavy. Just talk to me, ok.? I'll be working mornings these next few days, so anytime after lunch, I'm just a phone call away."

"All right, Luke. That's fine."

"Haley asked me to invite you for dinner and a movie on Friday. I'll cook this time."

"You any good?"

"Not up to your standards, but I know my way around a kitchen. Any preferences on movies?"

"A romantic one, this time. I warn you, I'm a crier."

"Any preferences?"

"How about Love, Rosie?"

"I didn't see it. That's fine. Don't tell Hales, but both Nathan and I actually like romantic stuff, if it ends well. This one does, right? I hate these stories where one the protagonists dies at the end. Real life is already too full of this shit."

"I happen to agree with you on that, handsome. You'll like the end."

"Do you have any plans for the weekend?"

"Not really, beyond working out, I guess."

"Since it's the last weekend before classes start, I was thinking of going to see my mom and my sister in Tree Hill, and I wanted to ask you to come along. It's a four hour drive. We would leave early Saturday, have lunch at my mom's Cafe. I'd show you around, see the places in the book, maybe watch the game tape. We could come back after lunch on Sunday. There's a full size sofabed we can share. As long as we keep it platonic, mom doesn't mind."

"Isn't it a bit early in the relationship to be meeting the mother?"

I laugh. "If we were dating, sure. As friends, no such thing as too early. You'll see why when you try her cooking."

"Thank you for the offer. Let me start on the book, and I'll get back to you about the weekend."

"That's fine. Take your time. Last day for enrollments is tomorrow. I decided to take Psych after all. I guess you sold me on the argument that a writer should have insight on the workings of the human mind."

"That's great!. I decided to take that literature class too, just because it will be fun doing it with you."

"Haley will be on that one too." I look into her eyes. "I think it's going to be fun, beautiful."

She replies without breaking eye contact. "I know it will. Goodbye sweetie." And a pause. "It's a little sad, you know? Best date I've ever had, and no kiss at the end."

We stand there, looking into each others eyes for a moment. The temptation of reaching down and kissing her is overwhelming, but I know that, if we begin, it will not end there. I break eye contact,

and laugh a little. "It was a date, wasn't it? A very good one."

She pouts. "Not the best?"

I rub my left shoulder. "Chapter three."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

It's Tuesday afternoon, and I've been lying on a recliner, sipping warm beer and reading Faulkner. I hear loud knocking on the front door, and Maddie's voice. "Where is he?" I sit on the recliner, and watch for her arrival, out of the back door. She opens the door and shoots me a death glare from the doorway. I can only think: what the fuck... as she barrels out screaming. "Lucas, you asshole!"

She walks up to me and pushes, both hands on my chest. I give two steps back, hit the recliner and fall backwards, with the recliner on top of me. Two observations. First, I don't recommend getting pushed in earnest by Maddie. It's like getting hit by an angry tree. In fact, I applaud the courage of anyone brave enough, or stupid enough, to get into a cage to have the crap beaten out of them by an angry Maddie. Second. My mom, Haley and Peyton have on thing in common. They are really scary when they get mad. Now, as I just found out, Brooke and Maddie have one thing in common. Sure, they are scary when they get mad. They are also very, very sexy.

Before I can say anything, she removes the recliner and lies down besides me. She is wearing a very simple plain yellow sundress, knee high with spaghetti straps and flip-flops. "She still gives me a stinging open hand slap in my arm. "How could you do that?"

"Do what, beautiful?"

"Cheat on Brooke, what else? You were an asshole, and Peyton, hell I don't have a word for Peyton."

"Brooke used "backstabbing whore" a few times."

"Yeah, the cheating asshole and the backstabbing whore will do."

"I take it you like Brooke."

"Of course I like her!"

"Seriously, Maddie, there are few things I regret more in my life than cheating on Brooke, specially with Peyton. I know I was an asshole, and I know I broke her heart."

"Then why did you do it?"

"I was sixteen and really confused. The painful thing is that Brooke never really trusted me after that. We were really in love with each other for a long time. That's one lesson I'll never forget. Love is important, but trust is just as important, and a lot easier to lose."

"I'd totally agree with that. Well put too. By the way, I'm loving the book. You're not just good, you're an incredible writer, with a voice as distinctive as that of Salinger."

Now, that made me blush. "Thank you, beautiful. You have no idea how nice it is to hear this particular accolade. I must have read Catcher fifty times over the years."

"I find it incredible that you have such a mature voice so young. Salinger was a grown man when he wrote Catcher. I'm dying to read the rest of the book, but more than that, I would love to read a novel written by a fully mature Lucas Scott. Never stop, handsome. It's quite a gift that you have. You're going to change the world."

That brings tears to my eyes. It's ironic how, without knowing, she is throwing my own words to Brooke back at me. "Thanks."

She rolls around, lying down on top of me, looking me in the eyes. "The date, Lucas. Chapter three? That was amazing. You're right. I don't think you're ever going to get one like that again."

"I don't agree. We weren't even trying, and we're both with someone else, and, if we didn't get there, we at least were in the ballpark. I swear I'm going to top that one, someday."

"Handsome and ambitious. I hope I am your girl that day, Luke. I wouldn't mind topping that. I have one request."

"Let me guess." I sit up and remove my shirt.

"Ahh. Nice." She traces the chinese character lightly with her fingers. "Do you think I could ever get Brooke to show me hers?"

"You're into girls, beautiful?"

"I find Brooke, as a literary character, very compelling. I'm mostly into boys, but I've experimented some. I had a month-long affair with a very cute dyke a while back. An older, flyweight boxer. She had tats everywhere. She really started to fall hard for me, just as I really started to miss something between her legs... I have a tat too. I'll show it to you when you see me in a really tiny bikini. What about you, did you ever do another boy?"

I laugh. "No. You know this is complicated, but the truth is, I would, with someone I liked. But all my wet dreams feature girls. You're the only person that ever asked this, and the only one I ever told."

"It doesn't surprise me. You have this way of accepting things without judging, of looking for beauty and meaning wherever you can find it. People tend to react to me, projecting their own preconceptions.

Instead, you took one look at me and called me beautiful. I'll always love you for that."

"The more I know you, the more beautiful you appear to me."

"Luke, you say something like that to me, the only response I can think is to take you to your room, and fuck you blind. Either break up already with Peyton, or keep your romantic comments to yourself, please. By the way, I'd like to go meet your mother in Tree Hill. I want to see the Rivercourt."

I reply, in a very small voice. "Ok. We leave Saturday at half past six. Bring a very tiny bikini, please."

It's half past eleven at night. Nate and Hales are asleep, but out little man got hungry, so I'm giving him a bottle. Maddie just comes in, eyes puffy, tears rolling down her face. "The school shooting." She nods. "I still have some fifteen minutes to go here. Just sit here with me."

She keeps sobbing quietly for a few minutes, lying in the sofa, head on my lap, while I finish feeding Jamie. I burp him, and I tell her. "Go to my bed. I'll be there in a couple of minutes. I diaper the now happily full sleeping Jamie, and set him back on his crib. I go to my room, shut the light, and lie down next to her, front to her back, and wrap my arms around her. In a small voice, she asks. "How long is he going to be inside for?"

"Manslaughter. Five to ten."

She untangles from my arms and sits on the bed, looking at me. "That's real light. It should have been murder two. Twenty-five to life."

"He turned himself in, and he had a good attorney, I guess."

"What do you mean, turned himself in? Just the GSR should have been enough to convict."

"GSR?"

"Gun shot residue. It's conclusive evidence that he had discharged a firearm recently."

"I don't think he was ever tested."

"It's standard procedure, Luke. Everyone on the scene gets tested."

"He was the mayor, beautiful. And I think even the chief of police was afraid of him. Besides, everyone was convinced that Jimmy Edwards had shot Keith, and then shot himself. It was open and shut."

"Even a half-assed ballistics investigation would have proved it couldn't have happened like that. God, I hate shoddy police work."

"I was the only one thinking that wasn't right. I knew Jimmy, he was my friend. I saw him a couple of minutes before he shot himself. I just didn't believe he had shot Keith."

"What happened?"

"I kept digging. Even my mother though that I was crazy, that was in denial. Eventually I found a witness, who saw Dan do it. Still, she wouldn't come forward. In the end, I tricked Dan into showing his true colors to my mom. I very nearly shot him too. The shock almost killed my mom and my sister. That's when Dan finally turned himself in."

"God, Luke. You did it? You made him pay?"

"I guess. It's all in the book. You just have to keep reading."

She was quiet for a long time. Finally, she said. "He's a sociopath, you know?"

"I know the word, but I don't really know what it means."

"It's a disease of sorts, not curable, but treatable. It basically means an inability to recognize the rights and feelings of others. There are several criteria, but, in Dan's case, I see impulsive violent behavior, deceitfulness and lack of remorse, and the inability to recognize having hurt someone. It is often associated with superficial charm and glibness, and, in an intelligent individual, with a great deal of personal success."

"That sounds right."

"Your mother was a very smart lady, keeping him away from you. Luke, sociopaths are vicious predators. This was completely beyond what a seventeen-year-old could have coped with. Even one with your obvious gifts. You needed professional counseling. Hardened cops get a leave of absence and go through counseling after enduring half of what you did."

"Instead, I wrote a book."

"It's a wonderful book, and a very effective coping mechanism too. But I would really like you to see a therapist. It's a great credit to the people around you that both you and Nate are sane and fairly well-adjusted men. Two people in particular. Your mother and Haley. Perhaps Brooke and Peyton too." There is a long pause.

"You know, this is my dream."

"What?"

"What you did. Hunting monsters. My dream job is to be an FBI profiler. Tracking monsters by getting inside their head."

"Why? Why would you want to do that?"

"I've always thought I would go into law enforcement. The profiler job just fits with the way my mind works. You'd probably be pretty good at it too."

"I've tried and tried to get into Dan's head, to understand how he could do what he did. I just don't get it."

"It's a disease, Luke. You don't have it within you to see the world from his point of view. You would need specialized training for that. I can give you a book on the psychology of personality disorders to read. You might begin to get it. There's a junior-level course on that at the school as well. You'd have to take a couple of psy courses to qualify, though."

"It's getting late Maddie, let's go to sleep."

"You're going to kick me out?"

"Of course not. The bed is big enough for both of us. Just remember. There's a three-month-old in this house. Sleep is interrupted sometimes."

When the alarm goes off, I still have Maddie softly snoring, wrapped in my arms. "Luke?"

"Good morning, beautiful. Just stay in bed. I have to put in a full day in the shop, so I can take the weekend off. I'll be back around five. I'll see you for dinner?"

"Hmpkfmnhk"

Out in the living area, Haley is giving Jamie a bottle. "I fed him at eleven. Did he go the whole night?"

"Yup."

"Wow! Good going, champ. Maddie is sleeping in my bed."

"Luke! Did anything happen?"

"You know she's reading Ravens. She reached the school shooting and came here, very upset last night. We talked a bit, and I told her to stay. I'm going to see mom this weekend, and she is coming with me. She wants to see the sights associated with the book."

"I'm pretty sure Karen will like her. But you are making me nervous, bil. Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"Right now, I'm trying to decide if I should break up with Peyton. I'm getting really involved with Maddie, and it's not just as a friend. This is beginning to get seriously unfair."

"I think Peyton is still in love with you. I thought you felt the same. What happened? Maddie?"

"I don't think so. I love Peyton. But I'm not in love with her. There is still only one girl in my heart, sis. It's neither Peyton nor Maddie. But I feel Maddie and I have a chance, and I want to try. I haven't slept really well in a long time, and today, with her in my arms..., well, today was different."

Haley smiles. "Well, well, For what it's worth, I like Maddie.

To be fair, I need to make sure she knows what she is getting into. Peyton certainly did. So, the plan is to let Maddie finish the book, take her to Tree Hill and have a long talk about us. If it turns out she feels like I do, I'll go to Los Angeles and break up with Peyton."

About half an hour later, Haley is still in the kitchen, when Maddie comes to the living room. "Good morning Haley Scott, Jamie Scott."

"Good morning, Maddie." A pause. "Did you sleep well?"

"Never better." She looks at Haley. "I'm the least romantic girl, Haley. I enjoy romance in fiction and in movies, but for me, well... I never had the interest, or the patience. Now I spend a night in Lucas' bed, fully clothed and without even a kiss, and I can hardly bear to be away from him." She gives a soft smile. "I think I'm in trouble, girl."

Haley giggles. "Been there, done that. Married the bugger. Even had his baby."

Now they giggle together. "They are good ones, aren't they?"

"The very best. I hope it works out, sweetie. You're good for him."

I get back from the shop with a supermarket bag, Maddie is sitting on the steps outside, with that smile on her face, the one that turns pretty into breathtaking. "Hey, beautiful, how was your day?"

"I pretty much hung around here all day, keeping company to Nate and taking care of Jamie a bit. I also finished the book. I have a dozen questions about it, but I think we can leave it for the trip tomorrow. What's in the menu?"

I set the bag in the counter. "Spaghetti and meatballs, salad, garlic bread and a couple of bottles of Chianti. Ah, and strawberry cheesecake."

"Sounds like a feast, handsome."

"Let me grab a shower, and I'll come back to prepare it."

Haley comes back from work a few minutes before dinner is ready. "Grab a glass of wine and put your feet up, sis. Dinner will be served in about ten."

Haley grabs a glass of wine, but sits on Nathan's lap instead, giving him a kiss. "Hi, hotshot. I missed you."

"I missed you too, girl. How was your day?"

"Boring. The hours were long, and the tips few. What about you guys?"

"I hung around with Nathan and Jamie the whole day today. Trouble is, I enjoyed Lucas bed so much last night, I didn't want to stray too far from it."

"She's good company. But she is beginning to sound like Brooke, no?"

"Really?"

"I don't think this comes out in the book, but Brooke and Lucas were the most sickening couple I've ever seen to be around. If they were in the same room, they were physically attached. And the conversation... it was all "pretty girl" this and "boyfriend" that."

"Ha! Look who is talking. Those two were the champions of the eye sex."

"At least we weren't permanently glued together."

Haley and Maddie exchange a glance. Lucas is getting uncomfortable. "I'm thinking about looking for job too. The three of you are so industrious, I'm beginning to feel like a bum, living on my dad's dime."

"I'd love to have you coach conditioning to the team, but I don't think we have the budget. I'll ask Whitey."

"I'd do that for free, Luke. The idea of running around campus with a bunch of sweating boys running after me..."

The three of them laugh at that. Nate asks. "Do you have any work experience?"

"I was a receptionist at a police precinct for a couple of years during high school. I'd really like to run self-defense or martial arts classes, but I can never make that work. Prospective students look at me and they think I'm kidding."

Haley gets a little worked up. "Hey, that's a shame."

Maddie shrugs. "I'll probably run some advanced training session on campus, but that's for serious martial arts people, who know better. That's good to keep my own edge, specially if I can find a couple of really advanced freaks, but it doesn't make money."

"Dinner is served, guys."

"Hey, big brother. This stuff is really good. I guess you take this week's prize."

"I agree."

"So, what's this prize?"

"Luke and Hales have a little competition going. Whoever cooks the best dinner of the week doesn't do dinner dishes the following week. Usually Hales wins, but this spaghetti takes the prize."

"You don't cook?"

"I'm learning, but I can't compete with these two. They learned from the master. You're meeting her tomorrow."

"Karen."

"Yup."

"Maddie is a better cook than either one of us, Nate. She was cooking for herself and her father since she was ten."

"Really? Hot, superpowers and a good cook. You should marry this one, big brother."

"I asked her, but she turned me down."

"I did not! I told you that when I needed a husband you would be the first to know. After this dinner, I'm putting you on notice. I may require a husband soon. " She smiles at Nathan. "I'm getting seriously envious of Haley. I don't even have to ask if her hunk has a brother..."

"Hey, girlie. Stop flirting with my Scott. He's too full of himself already."

After dinner and cleaning up, they sit to watch the movie. Nathan and Haley have the sofa. Lucas and Maddie arrange themselves in the floor. As Alex and Rosie finally find their way to each other, Maddie is sitting between Lucas legs, and has his arms around her.

"That was nice, Maddie, good choice. I think even the two boys here liked it"

"For a chick movie, it was pretty cool. That girl is very cute, and she is one hell of an actress."

"I agree, little brother."

"The girl is called Lily Collins. There is an older movie, called Stuck in Love, with the same girl. Have you guys seen it? It's pretty cool."

We hadn't seen it. "Well, beautiful, I guess we'll have to do this again."

"Great! I certainly enjoyed it. A question for you, Nate. Weren't you ever afraid that these two were just hiding something like that?"

"Not really. They've always had this pretty obvious sibling vibe going." He takes in Lucas wrapped around Maddie. "Now, you two being just friends..."

"We are definitely not just friends, little brother, and we all know that by now. We just need to resolve other issues in our lives, and figure out the next step, that's all."

"Well, good luck. All I can say is that you two look nice together."

"I'll have to agree with my husband on that."

"Thanks, guys. It's getting late, and I want to leave early. Walk you to your home?"

Maddie looks into Lucas eyes and says nothing. Lucas smiles. "You want to stay. Hell, I'd really like that too. All right, see you guys tomorrow morning."

"Bye, guys. Sweet dreams."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Prius or Mustang?"

She looks at me like I'm on something. "Hmpf. The Mustang, of course. But I want to drive too."

I give her the keys. If she drives as competently as she does everything else, I'm in good hands.

As we head out of town, she takes it to eighty on a long straight, and lets it back down to just above the speed limit. "God, Luke, it drives like a dream."

"She responds well to a good driver, beautiful."

"Thank you. So, a girl. Does she have a name?"

"Yes. Daisy. I never told anyone."

"Brooke's favorite flower. Boy, you were whipped." She slides her hands up and down the steering wheel, like a caress. "But it fits."

"About the book. First, I loved it. I think you will get it published, and it can easily be a best seller. It's a crazy story, though. I do have a few questions."

"Shoot."

"Could you actually see Abby in that office's window at some point?"

"The office window was visible from where I was standing while talking to Jimmy, with Peyton in my arms. I don't remember actually seeing her, but something about confronting Dan in that corridor brought out the information, out of my subconscious."

"It was incredibly brazen to go after your mother like he did. Even for a sociopath. Were you trying to kill him with that shot?"

"No. When I saw my mother unconscious, I just lost it. I was trying to scare him, but it wouldn't have bothered me if my shot had killed him. I was way past caring."

"Even if you had shot him, a good lawyer could have gotten you acquitted. It could easily be argued that you were defending your mother against a clear and immediate danger, knowing what you knew at the time."

"Changing subjects. Brooke was your first, right? At the hot tub?"

"Yes. I had my share of hot making out during sophomore year, but, yes, Brooke was my first, and my first hundred or more. Then Nikki, then four times with Peyton. What about you?"

"Compared to you, I'm very experienced. Three more-or-less serious relationships, first a boy, for a year and a bit freshman and sophomore year in high school. He is one year older than us, smart and sweet. He was my first, middle of freshman year. I had just turned fifteen. It ended because he was cheating with a cheerleader. Then a bunch of one-night stands. A month with the girl boxer between sophomore and junior year. Another bunch of flings. A long stretch without sex, and then Mick. Sex was never a huge deal for me. I love it, but it's like scratching an itch. I realize, specially after reading the book, that it is a much bigger deal for you. You're such a girl at times, Luke. It's adorable."

"I know. Single child of a single mother, girl best friend. I'm very proud of my girl side, Maddie."

I do a little gay impression. "You're not the first one to notice this, you know. Nate is constantly teasing me about it. He is such a boy." That cracks Maddie up. She ends up holding her sides.

I continue in the same vein. "Whereas you seem to have a seriously butch boy side, which my girl side really likes."

Maddie continues to laugh. "I guess. Single child of a single macho cop father, boy best friend. Yeah, I think you nailed it. We are made for each other."

We spend about an hour just enjoying the scenery and listening to music. Maddie's music taste is closer to Nate's than mine. She loves rap and hip-hop, but we can both listen to classic rock, so I made a playlist with Beatles, Led Zeppelin, the Dead, Stones, Deep Purple, Moody Blues, and a few others, which I enjoyed and seemed to make her happy.

About forty minutes before we arrived in Tree Hill, she turned off the music. "Let me begin with a disclaimer. I don't think you were fully mentally competent after the dealership fire, at least until graduation, probably a couple of months beyond that. You were amazingly functional considering what you went through, which, to me, means you are an extraordinarily strong and resilient individual."

"Thank you, I guess."

"It's just fact, Luke. You call me beautiful. I say you are a hero."

"I never felt like a hero."

"If you feel like a hero, you're not a hero. You're psychotic."

I laugh. "You have a way with words too, beautiful."

"I know that this weekend is, at least in part, about us. I need to understand where your heart is. So, what went through your head when Peyton told you she was in love with you? What was that "oh!" all about?"

"Peyton had been a close, dear friend for nearly a year. During that time I felt no romantic or sexual attraction to her. I was head-over-heels, crazy in love with Brooke. That day, Brooke had broken up with me a month before, then decided to have a date with me, like opening the door a crack. Then she slammed the door shut twice as hard as before. When Peyton came up with that, I honestly didn't know how to react."

"If you were thinking clearly, you would have stayed away from girls for at least six months after Brooke broke up with you."

I laugh. "You mean, up to now."

She laughs too. "Oh, yeah. In truth, Peyton and your friends should have known better. You couldn't possibly begin something new at that moment."

"Everyone thought Peyton and I were this star-crossed, predetermined couple, including Peyton, and, to some extent, Brooke. I knew better, but I was a little too broken up to resist Brooke, Peyton and everybody else. Besides, Peyton is gorgeous and I like her very much. She is quite self-involved though. It's actually part of her charm. If it seemed right to her, then it was right. It was my job to take care of what was right for me."

"Are you over Brooke?"

"No. With you, for the first time, I feel some hope that one day I might be. But I have no illusions. Part of me will always be in love with Brooke Davis. I like waking up with you in my arms. These past two days were the first where I didn't wake up thinking that maybe this was the day when she was coming back."

"So, this is your question for me. Am I willing to begin something with a boy that's carrying this kind of baggage?"

"That's right."

"The answer is very simple. Yes. I am dying to start something with you, baggage and all. I mean, I want everything with you, just like you told Peyton at Dan's beach house.. But I have a similar question for you, one that still requires a long talk before you can credibly say the same."

"Ok. I'm glad, though."

Soon we park in front of the Cafe. It's a bit before noon, so there are only a couple of customers. The lunch crowd would come later. Mom is behind the counter and Lily is in the crib at the corner. Mom comes around and throws herself on my neck. "Lucas, sweetie. I've missed you so much."

"Hi, mom. I missed you too. Mom, this is Maddie, Madeleine Ward. Maddie, this is my mom, Karen Roe."

Mom looks at me with a puzzled face. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Maddie."

"Likewise, Ms. Row. And this little charmer is Lily."

I pick up Lily from the crib, and I'm rewarded with a smile for my trouble. "Hello little sis. Missed ya too, you know."

We sit around a table, and Deb comes out of the kitchen. I stand up again, hand Lily to Maddie and give Deb a big hug. Over the years she's become a sort of favorite aunt I never had. "Maddie, meet Deb, Nate's mom. Deb, this is Maddie." Of course, Deb gives me a puzzled look identical to the one I got from my mom.

"Ms. Scott., a pleasure. I love your son and your grandson."

"Nice to meet you, dear. I go by Lee, now, but you can call me Deb."

"And you can call me Karen."

"All right, ladies. I know we're killing you. So, the short of it. Peyton is history, but she doesn't know it yet. Maddie is probably my new girlfriend, but we are still sorting out a few things." I look at Maddie. "Fair?" She nods and gives me her gorgeous smile. Both my mom and Deb stop and stare at her.

"Good lord, girl! With that smile, Peyton never had a chance."

She turns to me and lightly caresses my face. "So I've been told, Karen."

When we get home, mom asks me to take care of Lily. Bottle, bath and crib, so she can have some girl time with Maddie. I'm happy to oblige. They go sit on the steps outside.

"I'm glad to see you together, dear. I haven't seen him smile this much since..."

"Since Brooke."

"I don't understand what happened with them. They were so in love, and suddenly, nothing. And a month later, Luke was with Peyton. It just didn't seem right, somehow."

"We've been talking long and hard about this, Karen. This Peyton thing never made much sense. But Brooke..."

"He is still in love with her."

"Yes. But he feels that he can try to move on, with us. I'm willing to try. I'm falling in love with him, Karen."

"I can see he cares for you very deeply. But Brooke. You know, I love her like a daughter. She calls me every week, to tell me about her adventures in New York."

Maddie is surprised by this. "Really? And how is New York treating her?"

"Her fashion line is becoming very successful. She works very, very hard."

"Is she still dating Chase?"

"I think they broke up, I don't know why. You should be careful, dear. I think there's more to Brooke and Lucas break up than what Lucas knows. I fear she is not completely over him either."

That sends a shiver down Maddie's spine. "He feels there is absolutely no chance of ever getting back with her. I have to trust him on that for now. But if she ever wants him back, I don't know what would happen. Thank you for the warning, Karen."

"As I told you, I love Brooke like a daughter, but somehow, she broke his heart at a very bad time for him. I know she wasn't just being cruel, or cold-hearted, because she is not like that. She has a huge, kind and generous heart. That's why I think there's more to this story."

"I'll keep my eyes open."

"I hope everything works out, sweetie. He needs a good girl by his side, and the two of you look great together."

"Thank you, Karen. This means the world."

Maddie opens her arms and whirls around. "So, this is the Rivercourt. I hope you brought a ball." She is wearing a loose yellow sundress and no shoes, having left her flip-flops at the edge of the court, also no make up and no jewelry. Breathtaking. She does a series of cartwheels, ending on a somersault and a finish worthy of an Olympic gymnast. "I never go anywhere without a ball."

I pick up a ball in my trunk and, as I come back, she is scrunched up at the free shot spot, looking predatory. "One on one to ten, handsome. Winner gets a wish."

"You're on."

I stand in front of her, bouncing the ball with my right hand. I know she is going to surprise me, so I go for caution. I switch hands, faint to the right and turn left, preparing a jump shot. Before the ball leaves my hands, she jumps on me, hitting my chest with the back of her left shoulder and grabs the ball from my hands. I take a step back and nearly fall on my ass, as she plants her feet and shoots, scoring.

I have fast reflexes, a lifetime of training and I rarely miss a shot, plus a whole foot on her. Her reflexes are even faster, she moves like lightning and uses her body in ways the rulebook never intended. I actually fell on my ass three times already, I'm bruised, tired and I'm having the time of my life. We are nine and eight, and the ball is mine for the game. I pull a fade away, pulling back a step and going for a jump shot. She takes two steps forward, jumps twisting in the air to land with both feet to my chest facing the basket. She takes impulse, grabbing the ball as it leaves my hand and tucks in for a rolling landing, ball in her hand. I fall on my ass for the fourth time as she calmly gets up and scores. I'm sitting in the cement, scratching my head and laughing. She kneels between my legs, her eyes shining in the sun. "Nine and nine, handsome. Never mind the game. We both get our wish."

As she is pulling my head in for the kiss we've both been aching for, we hear laughter and clapping.

"That was outstanding, girl! Sorry, guys, am I interrupting something?"

As I was going to make the introduction, Maddie interrupts me, standing up. "Antwon Taylor, I presume."

"Skillz, babe." She gets up, walks up to him, and gives him a kiss in the cheek.

"You're very handsome, Skillz, just as I imagined."

I'm still sitting on the tarmac, as Skillz turns to me. "Hey, dawg. Really enjoyed watching Tinkerbell here hand you your own ass. "

"To be honest, I rather enjoyed it myself. This is Maddie. She's a friend from college."

"A friend. What happened to curly blonde, dawg?"

I get up and give him a half-hug. "I guess Peyton is history. She doesn't know it yet, so keep it to yourself for now. You interrupted what would have been our very first kiss. You know what? Give me a moment."

I pull Maddie by the hand, pull her face up and give her a kiss on the lips. She puts her arms around my neck and returns it, deeper, tongue in tongue. Skillz gives a fake cough, and we separate. "I think if you kids want to continue that, you'll need a room." He is quite right.

"You're still with Bevin?"

"Yeah. She is taking classes at the Community College here. I just moved to Wilmington, because classes begin next week. I've trained with the team there. We're gonna whup y'all's ass come December."

I laugh "Dream on, my friend."

"So Tink, that was some crazy ass Kung Fu shit you were slinging?"

"I'm an MMA fighter, Skillz. Mostly wrestling and kickboxing. I was just playing with my Pan here."

"I like this girl, dawg. If you ever get tired of Pan there, just look up old Captain Skillz."

Maddie gives him one of her trademark smiles. "Sure thing, Cap'n."

"How are the Scotts doing?"

"Settled. Jamie is doing fine, the same clever, happy baby he's always been. Haley is working at a diner and Nate is taking care of the house. We start classes and training next week. All right, man, I'm taking Tink on a Tree Hill tour. See ya later."

"Bye dawg, bye Tink."

We walk slowly, hand in hand, along the river.

"Pan."

"Tink"

"I love this. Best nicknames ever."

"Agreed."

"I want another kiss."

The second kiss is even better than the first.

The school is closed on Saturday afternoon, but I'd managed to get my hands on a key a while back. We begin by looking at the trophy case, where there the State trophy is displayed at the center, with a picture of the team, and another of Nate and I, with Whitey between us.

We head to the library, and we sit at the place where I found Peyton bleeding. There is still a small brown stain at the carpet marking the place. As I sit there, an overwhelming flood of grief comes over me, and tears spill. For the first time, I allow myself to feel the enormity of what happened here that day. I cry in her arms, and after a long time, we just stay there, my head resting on her lap, her hand softly caressing my hair. Finally, I feel strong enough to move. "Thank you, Tink."

"Thank you, Pan."

"For what?"

"For letting me in. I know it's not easy."

Next I show her the place where the standoff between myself, Keith and Jimmy happened. Indeed, from where I stood with Peyton in my arms, there was an oblique view of the room where Abby was hiding.

"For a time, I was asking myself if Keith would have come into the school if I hadn't. The answer for me became clear. Yes he would. Even if I was not in here, Nathan was. Besides, Keith really came in for Jimmy. When I went into the school, I saved two lives. Peyton, directly and Brooke, who would never have forgiven herself for abandoning Peyton, if she had died."

"I have no idea about Keith, but I certainly feel your actions that day were nothing short of heroic. And double that for saving your mother and sister from your father's clutches."

"Thank you, Tink. I haven't felt like a hero in any of it. In fact, the only one of those involved that sees me a bit that way is Peyton." I look at the walls of my old school, thinking of everything I went through here. "I don't think I can wait anymore, Tink. I'm going to call Peyton and break up with her tonight."

"Don't do it on my account. At least, not yet."

"I'm doing it because I am convinced we should never have been together in the first place. I love Peyton, and I can't go on deceiving her when I feel like this."

"Very well. I'll call Mick to break up with him too. But that's going to be because of the way I feel about you. I'm falling for you, Pan. It just ain't right to do it while someone who I still care about thinks he has a girlfriend."

The phone rings three times before she picks up. It's ten here, so it's six there. "Hi Luke, it's nice to hear your voice. What's up?"

"Hi Peyt. Do you have some time?"

"One of the local bands I've been following is playing a few songs in a dive in Hollywood, which I was planning to attend. I have to get my act together, but, for you, I can spare fifteen."

"There is no easy way to say this, so I'm just doing it. I'm breaking up with you." There is silence on the other end. "Peyt?"

"You're back with her." Her voice is cold.

"No. I haven't seen or spoken to her since graduation. But she is certainly part of the reason."

"There is someone else."

"Yes, but that is just another part of the reason."

"I can't deal with this right now. Goodbye, Lucas."

"We need to talk..." I'm talking to a dead line.

She looks at me as I walk back into the house. "That bad."

"It wouldn't have been any easier in person. But it would have been a little kinder to her."

"Well, Mick took it surprisingly well. I suspect he was already up to something, and feeling guilty."

As I lie down in the dark, with this wonderful girl in my arms, I think of the other amazing girl, whose heart I just broke. I can tell myself that she knew what she was getting into when we got together, but I know Peyton. She is a good person, but she can't really see much past her own inner storm. She was getting her hearts' desire. I'm not sure she realized she was actually getting something broken. It's partially my fault, I guess. People around me couldn't get past the tough guy act. The one person who could just lost interest, all of a sudden. I have to be thankful for the girl in my arms, whose bright blue eyes see right into my soul. And now I just have to wait for the other shoe to drop.

I wake up with movement around the house. Maddie is still asleep, so I get up quietly and go check out my mom. She is in Lily's room, changing a diaper. "Good morning, sweetheart. Did you sleep well?"

"Good morning mom, baby sis. More or less. I broke up with Peyton last night, over the phone."

"Ah. It was probably the right thing to do. Are you with Maddie now?"

"Not yet. We still need to talk. I'm taking her to the beach today."

She hands me Lily, who is awake and seems pretty happy. "I need to go to the Cafe, and I'm taking Lily. Why don't you two come by for breakfast on the way to the beach?"

"Thanks, mom. We'll do that." As I turn around, there is Maddie in the doorway, looking sleepy.

"Good morning, Maddie. Did you sleep well?"

"Good morning, Karen. Yes, warm and confy." She comes at me with a smile, and extends her arms. I give her Lily. She tickles Lily's belly, and makes baby noises at her. "Good morning, baby girl."

Mom goes outside to her car, and we follow. "We'll have breakfast at the Cafe, on the way to the beach. Is that ok?"

"That's fine, Pan. Good morning." Maddie opens the back door of mom's Jeep and straps Lily to her car seat. "Bye, little girl. Bye, Karen."

"I'll see you two in a bit."

"Bye, mom."

I grab Maddie in a bear hug. "Good morning, Tink." She gives me a serious stare. "How are you doing, really?"

"A little sore from the Rivercourt yesterday, and a little sad from last night's heart breaking job. Happy to be here with you and my other two favorite girls, though. You?"

"No regrets. Looking forward to the beach."

I go to the kitchen, to get together a little beach package. Some pb&j sandwiches. A little cooler with water and beer. I turn around and there she is. Maddie on a tiny blue bikini. Eyes bright with mischief, tiny smile on her face. Glorious body, every muscle defined, pert little breasts, a thigh gap to dream by., tiny and perfectly proportioned. "Like what you see, Pan?"

"Beautiful, Tink. Inside and out." That earns me a sweet kiss on the lips. "Good answer."

She pulls the blue triangle on her bottom down, until I can see the top of her pubic hair. A true blonde, my Tink. Right above it, in black, the letters dww, uppercase, no caps, inside a small rectangle. She looks at me expectantly. I see, a little test. I look at her sly smile, the location of the tat, and, after a few seconds, it comes to me. "Dangerous when wet?" She squeals and jumps in my neck. "At one point I made this promise to myself, that I would only sleep with people who could guess."

"So, how many people did?"

"You're the first."

"So, you've been celibate?"

Deadpan. "No. I'm just not very good at keeping promises to myself."

We get a pretty good laugh at that one.

We head to the Cafe, where mom had set aside a table for us. It's a bit early for the Sunday brunch crowd, so mom manages to sit with us, while we eat her signature french toast breakfast.

"So, what time are you leaving?"

"Late afternoon, I think. We'll stop by the house for a post-beach shower and to say goodbye, Ok?"

"That's fine. By the way, Andy is coming next week. He bought a fifty foot yacht, and he's been sailing around the world. I think he wants me and Lily to join him."

"Do you want to?"

"Maybe. I think I'm ready to move on, and you know I love Andy. He's very good to me. But I'd miss you a lot."

"Whatever makes you happiest mom. You know you deserve it."

She turns to Maddie. "Would you take care of him?"

"That's Nathan and Haley's job. I'll just use him for my own pleasure."

I blush, and mom giggles. "That will work too."

We're lying down on a pair of towels at the beach. "So, you said we still needed to talk."

She sighs. "Yes. Before we can really be together, there's something I need to say. I already know we are great together. But I am not your forever girl."

"What do you mean?"

"You want the the picket fence, the children, the whole family thing, don't you?"

"Yes. Even now, I envy a bit what Nate and Hales have. Don't you?"

"No. I mean, yes, but not enough to give up on my dream."

"Hunting monsters."

"That's right. I think I have a real shot of getting there. It's not a job many people want, or can do well."

"And that really doesn't fit with the whole family thing. I can see that."

"That's right. You can't avoid carrying some of the darkness with you."

"That's sad, Tink. I feel you'd be such a great mother. Don't you see yourself changing your mind after a while?"

"Sure, but it wouldn't be fair to make anyone wait for it. So, I would love to be your Tinkerbell, for now. But you're going to have to find your Wendy Darling someday. You game?"

I look at her. I have to be honest. "It's not easy to give up on the forever part, Tink, at least not for me. But I am eighteen, I can put forever in a box, for now, and focus on today with you, I think, I hope. You know I'm not really over Brooke, and forever was very much a part of my dreams with her. So, having said that, I would really like to be your Peter Pan, for as long as you'll have me. Yes, beautiful, I'm game."

It was not possible to make out while she was wearing that bikini and keep things PG. Given that it was a very nice day at the end of summer, the beach was reasonably crowded, so we relaxed in the sun, played a bit in the water, and went home.

"We have a couple of hours before mom comes home."

"Well, Pan, shower first." She walks into the bathroom and closes the door. Then she opens the door again, puts her face out with a wide grin. "Grab a couple of towels and follow me, dork. I've got an itch, and I need your help to scratch it."

My Tinkerbell can do things with that little body of hers that truly defy imagination.

When mom arrives with Lily, we are showered, dressed and our itch has been very well, and thoroughly scratched. Mom takes one look at the silly grins in our faces and she knows.

"So, you are together now."

"Tink is my girlfriend now, mom."

"Tink? Ah, Tinkerbell." She smiles. "It fits. Are you Peter?"

"I call him Pan now."

"Hm. Just a second." Mom goes into her room and comes back with one of our old picture albums. She opens it, and goes through the pages."Here, Halloween, when he was five." It's a picture of a little boy, my picture I presume, dressed in the green outfit, conic feathered cap and a wooden sword. "Peter Pan was one of his favorite stories around this age. So, that year, he asked for a Pan outfit, and I did it for him." She takes the picture out of the album and gives it to Tink. "Here, this is for you."

Tink blinks away tears. "Thank you Karen. I'll make a copy and send it back to you."

"It's not necessary, sweetie. Just come back with him from Neverland sometimes, to see his mother."

We drive in silence for a long time.

"Pan. Do you want to move in with me?"

"I'd like to sleep with you every night. But I also want to help Nate and Hales with Jamie, at least this first year."

"I could move in with you."

"I'd rather move in with you, as long as we either sleep in my room sometimes, or we bring Jamie to spend the night in your place. You must realize. You didn't get just a boyfriend. You got a whole family."

"I know. It's part of your charm, actually. And Jamie is a doll."

"With that I agree. But he is still an infant, and infants are hard work. I hope you don't mind."

"I won't. To my place then, tonight?"

"Sure. Just stop at home to talk with Nate and Hales a bit first."

"You got it."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

When we got back home, the other shoe dropped. "That's Peyton sitting on the steps, Tink."

"Wow. You're right. She's gorgeous."

"Just hang in there, this might get bumpy."

We park the car, get out and walk up to the house, hand in hand. Peyton gets up, checking us out. She is wearing jeans miniskirt, boots, a band t-shirt and her mother's leather jacket. Her hair is shoulder length, straight and light brown. She looks beautiful, as always, and angry. "So, this is the manstealing skank. Hi, I'm Peyton, his girlfriend."

Tink looks at her dead serious. "I'm sorry, Peyton. I wish we met under better circumstances."

Peyton makes a disgusted face. "Who are you?"

"I'm Madeleine, Maddie. I'm his girlfriend now."

She looks at me, heartbreak mixing with anger. "Luke?"

"Tink, you'd better get home. I'll meet you there as soon as I can, I promise. Here, take the car."

She gives me a peck on the lips. "All right, Pan. See you in a bit. Take care, Peyton."

I watch as Tink gets into the car and drives away. As I turn back to Peyton, she hits me with a very hard slap on the face, and sits on the ground, sobbing. I stand there, stunned, for a few seconds. As Peyton makes no motion to get up, I pick her up from the ground and squeeze her to my chest. She grabs at me and sobs even harder, letting herself relax in my arms. I cross the street with her, half holding her, half embracing her, and we sit on the park bench across the street. She goes on, sobbing in my arms for several minutes, until she gets a hold of herself, and sits back, staring at me.

"I'm sorry, Luke. You didn't deserve that."

"You got quite an arm Peyt. At least you didn't punch me, like you did Brooke."

"Did you cheat on me?"

"Yes and no. I knew where I was headed with Tink for a few days now. But we kissed for the first time yesterday afternoon. She is not the only reason I broke up with you."

"I know, Luke. I came here because I didn't believe you would really break up with me. My intention was to patch up whatever was wrong and get you back, even if I needed to move here and abandon my job in LA. But now I know it's hopeless."

"It is, but how do you know?"

"There is a look you have, whenever you look at Brooke. I don't know what it is. Your eyes soften, you smile a bit, and there is always a bit of longing mixed in. I have a couple of sketches of you where I think I captured that look. Even after you two broke up, you would still get that look when you saw her. For quite some time, I hoped, and I expected you would look at me like that, but you never did. I made peace with it, telling myself that this look of yours belonged only to Brooke. Well, I just saw that look again, when Maddie was walking away. It's not Brooke's look. It's just you, looking at a girl you're seriously into. And that's never been me."

Trust an artist of Peyton's caliber to get from a look, what a thousand words couldn't convince her. "We should never have gotten together, Peyt. I was so hurt, so heartbroken and so angry back in April, I had no business being anyone's boyfriend. Specially starting a new romantic relationship with a dear friend like you. And you weren't in much better shape."

"Luke, it's actually worse than you think. I think it was my fault that Brooke broke up with you. By all rights, I should have told you this a long time ago, but I've always been afraid. Afraid that you would hate me and afraid you would go right back to her."

"All right, Peyt. What happened?"

"A few days before Nathan and Haley's confirmation, I had a conversation with daddy. At the time, I was having this fling with Pete."

"From Fall Out Boy. I remember. He is pretty cool."

"Yeah. It was good when he was around, and bad when he wasn't. He had sent me an airplane ticket, to go meet him in Chicago. He didn't even talk to me to ask, his manager did. When I was struggling with it, my dad told me I should look for a boy who would be all the way in, who would be there for me no matter what. The truth is, so far, there has been only one boy like that in my life. You. My protector. My soulmate."

"That's why it's always been so confusing with you Peyt. I feel drawn to you. I feel very protective of you. There is a connection between us that I don't have with anyone else. I agree you are my soulmate, in some way. But I'm perfectly content with you as a dear friend. I have no serious impulse to kiss you, or to do sweet, freaky things with you like I do with Brooke or Tink. I felt no jealousy when you were with Pete, or with Jake. It nearly killed me to see Brooke with that jerk Felix or with Chase."

Peyton laughs. "If there is anyone I ever had this kind of strong physical thing with, it was your brother. I think you're right that this connection between us is real, but confusing. For a long time last year, I was perfectly content to be your friend, and have you chasing Brooke. Things began to change after that talk with my daddy. So, I blew off Pete, and I went to see the boy I had actually been longing for all that time."

"Jake."

"Yes. I went to Savannah, and I spent and incredible weekend with him and Jenny. To make a long story short, I thought I had found my place with them. I decided I would move to Savannah with Jake, finish high school from a distance, and go to college in Savannah. I proposed to Jake one night, and he accepted. Next morning Jake told me I said "I love you, Lucas" in my sleep."

"You were probably dreaming about the library. I still dream about that."

"I know. But he wouldn't hear of it. He told me he had to be careful, to protect himself and Jenny, that marriage is hard and that I had to go get clear on my feelings for you before we could be together. He told me he would wait."

"You got back from Savannah straight to the rehersal dinner. You had a huge fight with Brooke that night, but she wouldn't tell me why."

"Well, when we were in that bed, reenacting Nathan's proposal to Haley, the whole thing came crashing on me. I saw everything we had been through together, from the moment I nearly ran over you with the Comet, to you helping me after Elle's passing. My conclusion was that I was really hopelessly in love with you. So, that's when I did something I really shouldn't have. I told Brooke I was in love with you."

I was stunned. I stood up, walked back and forth. "Shit." I looked at Peyton, and she was just watching me process her revelation, tears coming down her face. "Shit! You knew how she would react, didn't you?"

"I guess, I was telling myself I was just being honest. In truth, yes, at the back of my head I knew that might create problems between you two. What I didn't expect is that she would just dump you the next day."

"We had other problems. Even the kiss in the library, that came out that day. But it was nothing we couldn't survive. I could never understand why she broke up with me like that. You've finally explained it."

"I'm sorry, Luke."

"I can't be with you right now. I'm going home to Tink. You can use my room if you want. Please, tell Nate and Hales that I'll be back before classes tomorrow and I'll explain. Goodbye, Peyt."

"Bye."

I knock on the door, and she opens right away. She looks at me and instantly frowns in anger. "She hit you."

I smile at her. "You are going to like it when I tell you the reason."

"All right. Tell me."

"She said there is a specific way that I look at Brooke, before and after we broke up, and that I never looked at her that way. She said that, as you left, I looked at you in exactly the same way. She slapped me because it broke her heart."

"The same way. You're right. I like it."

"It actually made things easier. She said that the way I looked at you made her recognize we were never meant to be together. She then said she was at fault for my break up with Brooke. She said that, on the day of the rehearsal dinner, she told Brooke that she was in love with me. She is right. That explains a lot."

"I don't get it. You were both in love. Why would Peyton's feelings for you matter?"

"Oh, they did. I had earned Brooke's love back, but I never really regained her trust. She thought that, if Peyton had feelings for me, I would inevitably end up with her. She broke up with me to protect her heart. Of course, there is more to it, but this is the key."

"She should have known better, or at least tried to work this out with you. You don't throw away something like you guys had lightly."

"Black and white. Tink. Brooke's heart and head didn't communicate very well. Her head told her I would end up with Peyton. Her heart was probably telling her I was really hers. The head won. and she is one of the most stubborn people I've ever met. She will spend a lifetime pretending she doesn't feel what she feels. I have an important question. Are you really as comfortable as you seem discussing things between Brooke and I?"

"This is a really complicated question, Pan, that I would like to leave for some other day. Let me just say this. I'm not the jealous type. Right now, I would really like to make out with you on our bed, if you are interested."

I answer with a smile. "Can I touch your boobies?" That gets her laughing. I'm beginning to remember what it is like to really enjoy being a boyfriend.

I set the alarm for six, but when I open my eyes, Tink is already gone. I go into the shower, and a few minutes later, she gets in also, sweaty and flushed. "Hi Pan, I went for a run. Do you mind sharing the shower?"

"Sharing a shower with my gorgeous girlfriend first thing in the morning. Let me think..."

It's a quarter past seven when we make it to the Scott's. Haley is in the kitchen, making breakfast. "Hi, Hales."

"Luke, Maddie. Have you had breakfast?"

"No, we hoped we could grab something here."

"Coffee, toast, some scrambled eggs ok?"

"That's fine. Tink?"

"Fine for me too."

"Tink?"

"Tinkerbell. Skills came up with it. But it fits. She calls me Pan."

Haley giggles. "Almost too cute. So, are you two together now?"

"Yes. Didn't Peyton tell you?"

"She came in pretty upset last might. She said the two of you came by and said you'd swing by in the morning. Then she went to your room, and hasn't come out since."

"Well, we had a pretty heavy conversation last night. I'll tell you and Nate all about it later. Let me check on her first, though."

I knock on my door and slowly open it. Peyton is in bed, but she is awake. She looks at me with a hurt expression, and I sit next to her and hold her in my arms. "Peyt, I can't say I'm ok with what you did, but I promise. We will get past this. You were one of my very best friends, and you always be very important to me."

She draws a deep sigh. "It's all right, Luke. I'm not sure I can be your friend right now, but give it time. I think I'm going to see Jake. I owe him that."

"That sounds good, Peyt. Good luck."

A few minutes later we are all having breakfast. I introduce Tink and Peyton, and, although polite, Tink can't hide her anger at Peyton. Finally Nate can't take it anymore and turns to Tink. "Hey, why are you mad at Peyton? You stole her boyfriend, and she seems pretty gracious about it."

"I don't think he was ever really hers. And it's what she did to Brooke that I'm mad about."

"What? Your boyfriend and Peyton did it to Brooke. I don't see you glaring at him. Besides, what's it to you?"

I sigh. "Tink likes Brooke, even though she never met her, and she is not talking about cheating."

Now it's Haley's turn to be annoyed. "What did you do to Brooke, Blondie?" She never completely forgave Peyton's position when she came back from the tour.

Peyton looks at me, begging for me to explain. "Do you guys remember Brooke and Peyton has this huge fight the day of your rehearsal dinner?" Both Hales and Nate nod. "She told Brooke she was in love with me."

Nate and Hales just take that in for a second. Nate just says "Damn, Peyt." Hales is a bit more explicit. "That's why she broke up with Lucas!" She gives Peyton a death glare. "That was one nasty thing to do, Blondie. You knew what that was going to do to Brooke."

Peyton looks to the ground, and answers in a small voice. "At the time, I was just telling myself I needed to be honest. Deep down I knew this would create problems for Luke and Brooke, and I know, I always knew I shouldn't have said anything. Eventually Brooke forgave me, and when Lucas and I got together, it seemed to justify, in some way, what I had done."

"And the three of you saw no problem with what happened? One month out of a relationship where both people involved were obviously in love, he jumps into another relationship, with a complicated history, and considering everything he had been through that year? None of you thought he needed some time to heal?"

They all look down, but Haley speaks up. "Putting it like that, You're right. I don't think I was the best of friends. I thought he belonged with Peyton. We were caught up in our own drama, and Luke seemed to know what he was doing. But he couldn't, right? Not after everything." Her eyes fill with tears. "I'm sorry, bil."

I put my arms. "None of it was your fault, sis. I should have known better too."

Nathan puts his arm around Peyton's shoulders. "I sort of knew Luke belonged with Brooke. I just didn't think I could do anything about it, and I thought things would sort themselves out in the end. Do you remember, big brother, when I asked you who you wanted by your side when your dreams came true? You didn't think twice. I thought you were going to answer Peyton. I'm sorry, sweetie. I should have been looking out for you a bit better too."

Tink adds. "You guys should talk to Brooke. Karen says she hasn't really moved on from Lucas either."

"What do you mean "either"?" Asks Peyton.

""Lucas hasn't. I said I didn't think he was ever yours. But I do think, to some extent, he is still Brooke's, even if she doesn't agree." And with a smile. "And now he is a little bit mine too."

"You got that right, Tink."

"Doesn't this bother you?" Asks Peyton.

"I'm falling for him, girl. Badly. I'll take whatever I can get."

I'm beginning to realize that Tink wishes that Brooke be my Wendy Darling. I could probably live with that, even if I already know it's going to hurt like crazy to let go of Tink. "I think I'm falling just as badly for you, Tink."

Nathan looks at his watch. "Guys. Good talk, but I think three of you have class in twenty minutes. Scram."

"Hi, Pan. What's for dinner?"

"I have a meatloaf in the oven. There's leftover mashed potatos and corn on the cob in the fridge. Wanna beer?"

"Sure. Where are the other Scotts?"

"Nate is in class. Hales is at work. Jamie is asleep in his crib."

I sit on the couch with my beer, and she sits on my lap and we kiss, and kiss...

"Ah! I almost forgot."

"What?"

"I got a job. Campus police dispatcher. Boring, flexible hours, crummy pay."

"Congratulations? Let me guess. You wanted patrol, but they thought you weren't... scary enough. Them fools."

"Nah. I wanted an office job."

"Why?"

"I'm thinking of doing something. You're not going to like it."

I sit up and frown. If there's one thing I know about Tink is how serious she can be. "What?"

"I want to go after the rapist."

Two questions. "Why" and "How".

"The why is twofold. One, get some garbage out of the streets. Two, ultimately, it looks good on my resume. The Bureau has an early trainee program that would allow me to start after my third year here. Usually this is for GI Bill folks, who have armed forces experience and training and are a bit older. But a citizen's arrest in a case like this would put me in the running."

I know what the answer will be, but I ask anyways. "About the how?"

She explains. "You can't do that, Tink. It's too dangerous." She just stares at me, eyes shining like sapphires. "Damn. How can I help?"

She smiles. "I hoped you would ask."

That night we start on her little plan. She dresses like a cheap whore, or a high school student going to a party, which seems to be about the same. She walks about, late at night and seemingly drunk, in certain neighborhoods she carefully chooses based on previous patterns of attack. I walk quietly and out of sight about a block away, all in black, wearing a button jack in my ear and a tiny microphone. In my pocket, a taser. She says that, with ninety five percent confidence, she can take care of any assailant not using a firearm, which seems to be the case with the rapist. I'm insurance for the other five percent. Her codename is bait, mine is backup. We do it for about two hours, between one and three in the morning. It kills me that, during that time, we do not see a single police car.

Tink decides I must learn about self-defense and firearms, so I begin to spend a few hours per week in a rubber mat, with Tink beating the crap outta me. It's painful, but kind of sexy. Tink says I have the instincts and the reflexes, out of a lifetime playing basketball, so all I need is technique and a meaner mind-frame. She also takes me to a firing range, and gets me shooting with different pistols. It turns out I am a bit of a natural with it, quickly getting the hang of putting a hole where I want it, from twenty to fifty feet away.

The alarm goes off, and I open my eyes to the two sapphires staring at me. "Good morning, beautiful.".

"Good morning, Pan," With a smile. "A shower, a quickie or both?"

She has been sleeping naked when we are at her place, which makes the choice easy. "Quickie first, then shower."

"I hoped you'd say that."

Forty minutes later we are out of the house, walking fast to the Psych class we are both taking. I can still feel myself inside of her, so I'm walking with a smile, and she looks like she is thinking about the same thing.

"Love waking up with you, Tink." She is hard to embarrass, but that puts a bit of color in her cheeks.

"Same here. I love going to sleep with you too." The previous night, we did have quite a bit of fun before falling asleep.

"And the cuddling in between is not bad either." We've been sleeping together for three weeks, and spending with each other all the time our hectic lives allow. For all her physical intensity, Tink has a serenity that I find very restful, that slowly relaxes parts of me that I didn't even know were wound up. I'm sleeping better than I can remember. Suddenly, something clicks in my mind.

"I love you, Tink."

She smiles, but keeps walking and says nothing. I stop in front of her, put my hands in her shoulders and look her in the eyes. She looks at me, her smile deepening, and she relents.

"Well, Pan, this is not exactly news. You've been saying it with your eyes, your hands and your body for a little while now. I was just wondering how long it would take for reality to percolate into that thick boy brain of yours. If you need to hear it, I love you too, probably since the moment you called me beautiful. It took me a while to figure it out too."

I kiss her briefly. "You are a wonder. And We have to hurry."

After Psych, I have Physiology of Motion, which is in a nearby building, and I meet Haley and Tink for lunch at the main cafeteria. I take my tray with food and meet the girls, who are already sitting down and chatting. "Hey sis, girlfriend."

Tink just nods, her mouth full, but Haley smiles at me. "Hey bil. Maddie was telling me you said the L word to her this morning. Good work."

"Did she tell you her response?"

Haley's eyes brighten with curiosity, and Tinks lips press in a tight line, repressing a smile. "No."

"She said it was not news, that it was written all over my behavior, and that she was just curious to know how long it would take for my thick brain to catch up. She also told me that, if I needed to hear it, that she loved me too, longer than I did her. In case you haven't noticed, she is a bit competitive."

By the time I finish delivering that, Hales is laughing so hard, people around are beginning to stare.

Tink slides over and sits on my lap, arms around my neck. "You are a wonder too." Followed by a deep kiss.

After thirty seconds Hales loses her patience. "Hey guys, I'm still here. Break it up." She turns to Tink, exasperated "You're as bad as Brooke."

Now, that brightens Tink's day. "Thanks!" Haley turns to me, puzzled.

"Haven't you noticed? She want to be Brooke when she grows up."

"Well, she's gone a long way already. She's got you. Oh, by the way, I almost forgot. Brooke is coming over this weekend. She said she will be here tomorrow morning."

"Really? Way to bury the lead, sis." My heart is racing a bit. I haven't seen her since the party after graduation. "Does she know about me and Peyton?"

"No. She was complaining that Peyton disappeared three weeks ago. Do you have any news of her?"

"She is in LA, but she is back with Jake, tentatively. Apparently she will be moving to Savannah in a month or two."

"When did you hear from her?"

"I didn't hear from her. I heard from Jake last week. I didn't think it was my news to share, sorry."

"That's ok. Nate will be relieved. He is really worried about her."

"So, Brooke is coming here. When do I finally meet her?"

Haley suggests. "Dinner tomorrow?"

"That's fine. Make it half past seven." I spend the whole day in the garage on Saturdays, opening it up at eight and closing it at six. I need a long soak and one of Tink's massages, to be human again after that."

"Pizza after the game tonight?"

"I look at Tink, and she nods. "Sure."

"I'm bringing Jamie to the game, so I'm driving. Can I use the Mustang? That way we can park in your spot at the gym. You should come with us girlie."

"Sure thing."

"The key is in the bowl near the door at Tink's home."

"I'll bring the keys when I come over. The game is at seven, so I meet you at half past six in your home."

"Make it a quarter past, Maddie. Traffic gets a little confusing on game nights."

After lunch, Haley goes do whatever she had to do and Tink and I go to the gym. Tink goes to the weight room, and I go see Whitey, to catch any pre-game instructions.

"Lucas Scott, nice of you to show up."

"Hi, Coach. Any pre-game instructions for me?"

"I want you to watch numbers fourteen and twenty-two. Fourteen was limping at practice yesterday. I want you to go to the weight room and make sure if he is ok, and otherwise, take him to medical. Twenty-two was missing too many throws this week. I want you to run throw practice with him during pre game warm-ups."

"That's fine, Coach. Anything else?"

"No. Well, where is mini-blonde? Is she still taking the team on runs?"

I laugh. "She took them out for a five-mile run on Wednesday. Nate is getting to the point where he can keep up with her, but the others... Let me just say she was not happy with them. The team on the other hand, is beginning to think of her as their mascot."

"Well, get her to come down and sit with us during the game. It's just fair, if she is helping to train them. And who knows, it might motivate the team a little." I certainly find Tink motivating, if a little distracting. Well, today is the fourth game of the season, and we are down two-one. We lost the first two games, mostly because we had a hard time integrating Nate with the rest of the team. Some of the older players got very mad that we made a freshman captain, and it took them a while to understand what Nate could do. Now, however, we've found our groove, and even though today's opponent is tougher, I think we will beat them easily.

When I get down to the weight room, there are three boys gawking, while Tink is doing fast bench presses with one hundred and twenty pounds. Of course, she does it for strength and conditioning, so she uses light weigh and lots of fast repetitions. Trouble is, light weights for Tink can be pretty heavy for boys twice as big as she is. The truth is, I'd love to stay and gawk while she pumps iron too. It's really a sight to see. But it annoys her, so I disperse them and go about my business..

Of course, number fourteen is one of the gawkers. I take him through an intense stepper routine, and some leg presses, and I give him a clean bill of health for tonight's game. Afterwards, I change and come back to pick up Tink, for our rubber mat time. Today is dealing with assailants with a knife.

"Rule number one. If someone comes at you with a knife, don't dick around. Pick up your gun. Point at them. At more than ten feet, tell them to drop it or you will shoot. At less than ten feet, just shoot. Best thing in the world, bringing a gun to a knife fight."

I know that was a joke, but I can't laugh about shooting people, so I just mouth the words. "I love you". She smiles.

"Rule number two. Fight the assailant, not the knife. You've got the reach, the strength and the speed on the vast majority of humanity. Use it. Get inside your assailant's reach and go for one of the disabling spots, knees, groin, neck, eyes and nose."

We train motions which start with a knife attack, from the top, down, in or sideways, dodge or deflect and ends up in a disabling blow to one of the five points.

"Rule number three, if you have to take a cut, favor the upper side of the arms. There's solid bone just below the skin there, and no serious wiring or plumbing."

We keep training, and, if I am the assailant, I usually end face up in the mat with Tink sitting on my chest. That's the best part of the exercise.

As usual, we attract a little crowd of attendees, and a couple of people approach Tink about joining our little class. She tells them that she might consider it later, but, for now, she wants to focus on making sure her boyfriend is capable of defending her, if need arises. That joke makes people leave chuckling. I shower and go to the library, do some work and write a little. I've finally begun working on a second novel. It's about a man and a comet. I've done a good outline, and I'm now working on the second chapter. At six I head back to the gym, to change to a suit and tie, and do game prep.

ooooooooooooooo

Haley and Maddie are transferring the car seat between the Honda and the Mustang, when an Audi two-seater stops in front of the house, and Brooke steps out. Haley and Brooke start squealing. "Tigger!", "Tutormom!" They embrace and jump up and down, while Maddie watches attentively.

"It's so good to see you. And a surprise too. We were expecting you tomorrow morning."

"It's great to see you too. And where is my godson...". Maddie had already taken Jamie out of the seat and brought him to Brooke. Brooke picks him up and talks to him. "Such a handsome little man. I'm your aunt Brooke, and I've missed you." Brooke looks up from Jamie to Maddie and looks at Haley. "Oh, this is Brooke Davis, my best friend and Jamie's godmother. This is Maddie and..."

Introducing Maddie and Lucas girlfriend will start a complicated conversation they do not have the time for. ".. she is a friend."

Brooke takes in the sapphire eyes, intelligent and curious, and the game outfit, jogging pants, team jersey, sneakers. "Nice to meet you."

"I've been looking forward to meeting you, Brooke Davis. I feel I almost know you from Lucas' book."

"Ah, you read it? Well, I haven't. Except for one paragraph. You shouldn't believe everything broody wrote about me. Are you guys going to a game?"

"Yeah, we have a tough home game today."

"I'd love to watch it. Any chance?"

"Let's go to the gym. I'm sure we can find a way."

We park and get out. "Haley, Brooke, go right in with the tickets we have. I'll find Pan and he'll find me a seat."

"Who is Pan?"

"That's Lucas. Long story."

Maddie walks right in. The security people know her from her job, and everyone else knows her as Coach Scott's girl. She goes right into the team's locker room, where she is greeted with blown kisses, wolf whistles, indecent calls, a kiss from Lucas and a smile from Whitey. "Mini-blonde, would you mind following the game from the Coaches' seats? Me and your boy here would enjoy your company."

"It will be a pleasure, Whitey." Problem solved.

As we are leaving the locker room Tink pulls me aside. "Pan, Brooke is here."

"Really? She always loved surprising people."

"She doesn't know we are together yet."

"Don't worry, Tink. We'll let her know real soon."

We begin pre-game warm up, and I'm directing twenty-two at throwing. After ten minutes, it becomes clear that he is somehow off his game, so I suggest Whitey we bench him. I'll work with him on that during the week.

"Tutormom, is that Maddie sitting with Whitey?"

"Yes. She runs some of the stamina training for the team. I guess that entitles her to sit with Luke and Whitey."

"How come?"

"She is some kind of martial artist. Nathan calls her supergirl."

It was a great game, Nate scored thirty points, and the Bulldogs won seventy-eight to sixty-four. Brooke hardly saw the game, as she was watching Lucas and Maddie like a hawk. She kept getting more agitated, realizing there was something there, and she finally exploded when the game ended and Maddie jumped on Lucas neck and gave him a very serious kiss.

"What the hell!" Brooke almost ran down the bleachers, and even as Haley tried to stop her, she was hampered by having Jamie and his bag. Lucas was hugging Nathan when furious Brooke got to them. "Lucas! What are you thinking? What are you doing kissing that miniature skank?" She slapped Lucas in the chest and continued. "You're back to your old cheating ways, you stupid ass!"

Nathan tries to intervene. "Brooke.."

"Don't Brooke me, Nathan Scott! You're supposed to be Peyton's friend too."

Maddie sees that Lucas is beginning to get mad. She speaks forcefully. "Pan, Nate. Wait for us outside. Let me handle this."

Lucas looks at her in confusion. "You're going to end up saying something you'll regret. Let me handle this."

"All right, Tink."

Brooke looks in astonishment as Nathan and Lucas follow Maddie's instructions. She tries to follow after them, but Maddie grabs her arm with an iron grip.

"What are you doing? Take your hand off me!"

Maddie gives her a very serious look and speaks "Brooke! Give me a minute."

Something in her voice, or in her grip, gives Brooke pause.

"Brooke, Lucas broke up with Peyton a month ago. I've been with him since. There's no cheating going on."

"You're his girlfriend?" Maddie nods. "Shit." Brooke falls to her knees, hides her face in her hands and quietly begins to cry.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Jealousy, regret and longing swirling around, shattering my composure and the carefully built mask I present to the world. Damn that boy. In a suit and tie, looking hotter than he ever did in high school. The anger in his eyes shattering my heart, just as it lights a fire between my legs. Lucas Scott, ever the sweet, considerate lover. Last night, I dreamed of him taking me in anger, ripping my clothes off, doing me roughly as he whispered coarse words at me. Where is Peyton now? She took him from me and couldn't even keep him? This girl? Who is she? I saw the way he looks at her. I also saw the way both Scott boys trust her, the way Tutormom likes her. Is he hers now? My heart feels like a stone in my chest. When he went for Peyton, I was sure I was right. I could bear the heartbreak, because I was right. But Peyton is gone, he is moving on. It looks like I made one horrible mistake. I pushed him away, lied to him, and it's too late to fix it. Too late. Damn. I need to pull myself together.

The blonde girl is helping me up, pulling me along. She takes me through the boys locker room, still crowded with players changing after the game, into a small office with his name on the door. I sit on a leather chair and she leaves, coming back seconds later with a tall glass of water. Her eyes are bright blue, showing curiosity and bit of compassion. She is pretty, in an unassuming way, and her small body seems very fit. The blue penetrating stare and the suggestion of a keen mind behind it remind me strongly of him. I catch my breath, finally calming down and recovering my cool a bit. There's a lot going on that I don't understand. "Thank you. Maddie, right? You're very kind."

"You're welcome. That's right, I'm Maddie. Just take your time. They will wait for us."

"Maddie. I shouldn't be asking you, but could you please tell me what happened between Lucas and Peyton?"

"It's quite all right, Brooke. They broke up a month ago. You might say I stole him from her, but that wouldn't be fair. He broke up with her because he was not in love with her. We became involved when they arrived here, and as it looked like we were falling for each other, he called her to break up. A couple of days later she showed up here, and they talked. She is fine. I understand that she is back with Jake, and will be moving to Savannah soon."

"I don't get why she didn't call me."

"She is probably ashamed. She told Pan, and Nathan and Haley about what she did at the rehearsal dinner. They were very angry with her. Even I was angry with her. She recognized what she did was terribly selfish, and she is still probably trying to find the courage to tell you that, in the end, she did it for nothing."

Yes, that sound right to me. And he is probably very mad at me too. At least now he knows why we really broke up. Maybe that will give us some closure. "You're right. Maybe I should call her".

"I think she would like that."

Why do I feel so comfortable talking with his new girlfriend? For one, she is a good listener.

"He called you "Tink". Pan and Tink. Of course! Peter Pan and Tinkerbell." I look at her and smile. "It fits too." She smiles back, and now I see how she really snared him. It wasn't the the cleverness and caring behind her baby blues. It was that smile. I still know my Broody. The weight comes back to my heart. My Broody...

"Skillz saw us playing basketball at the Rivercourt, and he gave me that nickname."

The two of them playing basketball at the Rivercourt. "Can I call you Tink too?"

She answers with a question. A loaded one. "Do you still care for him?"

What kind of question is that from his girlfriend? Of course she would want to know, but I feel no fear in her. She should be defensive, insecure. Instead, she seems friendly, and a bit concerned for me. If it's and act, it's the best I've ever seen. I have to answer her. "It's been a long time..." She stares at me, and I feel she can see straight into my thoughts. "Yes. I still care for him."

"Then you can call me Tink. But you should know, you have a nickname too. I won't use for now, unless we are alone, though."

"What's the nickname?"

"Wendy."

Shit. She can't possibly mean this.

When we get outside, they are quietly waiting for us. I give Nathan a big hug. "Hi, Nate, Luke, sorry for the meltdown. Tink set me straight." Tink stands next to Lucas, he places his arm across her shoulders, and she places her arm around his waist. They are both looking at me. It's not nearly as hard as it was seeing him with Peyton. There is still jealousy and regret, but no anger, no sense of betrayal. It's hard, but doable. The jackass smiles at me, and my heart gives a little somersault. "I've missed you Brooke. It's nice to see you. And Tink was really looking forward to finally meeting you. You may say she is a fan of yours."

A fan. I make a wrong assumption. "So, you're into fashion, Tink?"

"No. I really like your character in Pan's book and the impression you make on your family."

I wonder what that means. "Thanks, I guess."

Haley decides it's time to move. "Hey guys, I want to go back, before this little man decides he needs to feed. Tigger, with those heels, you should come back with me."

"You should go with them too, little brother. I'll walk with Tink."

"All right, see you in a bit."

"So, beautiful, what did you think of Cheerie?"

"Brilliant, beautiful and brave?"

I can't avoid laughing. "I'm damn right, I guess."

"Seriously. I like her. She's everything you wrote, and more. Also, she's not over you. I think she's got it worse than you."

"You want me to go after her."

"I don't think that could work. Just try to keep her close."

"If she feels as you say, it's going to be painful to be around us."

"I know. But she is very curious. We are not exactly your usual couple."

"If you want to befriend her, invite her to go shopping."

Tink gives me a dirty look. "Shopping."

"You're a good actress, beautiful. Pretend you're fashion challenged and you need a makeover."

She gives me another dirty look. "You're dying to see the end result."

I smile, and break into poetry. "You know me so well, Tinkerbell"

She giggles, and we stop to make out a bit against a tree.

"So Tutormom, how did those two meet?"

"She was sitting on a bench at the park across the street, watching us move in the day we arrived in Clarksson. Luke noticed her and went to talk with her, figure out what she was doing. They hit it off instantly and have been attached at the hip since."

"The two of you like her."

"She is a great girl. She is pretty strange at first, like someone who marches to her own drummer. She can also be really funny, in this dry, deadpan way."

Nathan adds. "She is an amazing athlete. Dedicated, focused, intense. You can see that she moves like a cat. She is stronger than half the boys in the team and quite a bit faster and fitter than I am."

"Stronger than half the boys in a college basketball squad? She is five feet tall and weighs less than a hundred pounds. You can't be serious."

"You'd have to see her in the weight room. People just stop and gawk when she is working out."

"Of course, she loves Luke, and she seems to be really good for him."

"I got the strange girl thing. She is Luke's girlfriend, and I am a sort of recent ex with a lot of history with him. She should be intimidated, insecure, defensive. Instead, I get this really pleasant, friendly vibe from her. Broody said she is my fan."

"That's right. It's pretty cute actually. Very soon after they first met, Luke gave her Ravens to read. A couple of days later she comes here, really pissed at him because of the cheating thing. She was also really angry at Peyton over the rehearsal dinner thing. By the way, Peyton confessed what she did. We're still mad at her over that. The other day they were being a little over the top with the PDA, and Nate complained, saying she was beginning to remind him of you. She actually thanked him, and Luke explained she wanted to be you when she grew up."

"Isn't this a little creepy?"

"Doesn't feel creepy when she does it. You're gonna have to make up your own mind, I guess."

A couple of minutes later they get in, holding hands. By the looks of them, they had spent some time making out while on their way. I can't help myself. "Hey guys. Had fun?"

They exchange a quick glance and smile. "Sure did, Cheerie. Did you guys already order pizza?"

"Yes." Nathan says. "Two pies. Pepperoni extra cheese and Hawaiian"

"Cheerie."

"Yes?"

"I think we should have a talk."

I look at him, and I get no clue regarding what he is thinking. I sigh. "Ok, Broody. I guess we should."

"My room or the park across the street?"

"I vote for the park. It's a beautiful night out."

"The park it is, then. Just give me five minutes to get out of this suit."

He goes into his room and comes back wearing a Ravens jersey, exercise pants and flip-flops.

He gives Tink a peck in the lips and grabs my hand on the way out. The casual hand holding makes me uncomfortable, so I pull out my hand as soon as we walk outside. He looks at me a little puzzled, and smiles. We sit on a park bench across the road from the house. "So, this is where you first saw her?"

"Haley told you the story."

"Yes. So, broody, what's this about?"

"Our break-up in January."

"Yes, I guess the monkey is out of the bag. Are you mad with me?"

He laughs. "A little. But it's really hard to stay mad at you, Cheerie. I've missed you so much..."

Damn sweet boy. He has a way of getting past my defenses, even without trying. "Tink seems to be a nice distraction."

"I'm trying to move on, Brooke."

"You broke up with Peyton."

"It's not Peyton I need to move on from. I broke up with her because being with her didn't help. Tink does."

A long silence follows. "I'm sorry, Luke."

"What are you sorry about?"

"Everything. I should have told you. about Peyton"

"Why didn't you?"

"I was sure that if I told you, you would dump me and go after her. I was always certain that the only reason you were ever with me is that Peyton was not available."

"I'm sorry, Brooke. I know we did a number on you junior year. But I can't believe you had no idea how I really felt about you."

"Oh, I knew that you were in love with me. I was right there with you at Rachel's lodge. I just didn't trust it. When you went for Peyton at the championship game, I felt you proved me right."

"You actually sent me to her."

I recall that moment perfectly. I needed him to go to Peyton. I was so lost, so hurt, I needed to justify my choices. Now I can't avoid being angry, at myself and at him. "You didn't fight for us."

"After losing everything that year, I had no strength left to fight, Brooke. I should never have started anything with Peyton. Even if I was really in love with her, it was wrong for many reasons. And the truth is, I wasn't in love with her. I probably never was."

I can feel the tears coming. I grit my teeth, I'm not going to break down again. But I owe him to be honest. "I'm afraid I made a mistake breaking up with you. I was sure you belonged with Peyton. I always said it's what you do, not what you say that counts. I guess you proved me wrong after all."

"Brooke."

I'm not sure this is closure. If anything, I'm even more unsettled now than I was before talking to him. I hate this. I'm going to let that little blonde to sweep in, and ride into the sunset with the only boy I've ever really cared about? "It's too late, Luke. I'm sorry."

When we went back in, the pizza had already arrived. Both Luke and I were in a pretty somber mood after our conversation, and I kept a discreet watch on Lucas and Tink. Nathan and Haley kept the conversation going, as Luke and Tink exchanged no words, and just a few glances. She stayed close, grabbed his hand and let him lean on her. It was a touching show of support and concern. After a while, he begun to relax a little, and she turned her regard to me. I was half expecting to see anger in her eyes, but that's not what I got. Just the silent question "Are you ok?" I smiled and nodded reassuringly. She gets near me and puts a hand softly on my arm. "Brooke. Lucas and Haley work the whole day tomorrow. You could stay with Nathan and Jamie in the morning, but would you like to have lunch and go shopping in Charlotte with me in the afternoon? Pan thinks I could use some tips on style."

I'm surprised by the request. Do I want to get to know this girl better? I can see I could grow to like her a great deal. Except for an unfortunate slip up with Nikki, I can only respect Luke's taste in women. "Do they have Victoria's Secret in Charlotte?" I smile as I see Lucas interest picked.

"Yes, they have a store at the Mall."

"Very well, Tink dear, as long as you make time for a quick visit to the salon for some styling and a mani-pedi, you're on."

The brief look of panic in her eyes does not escape me, just as Luke, Nate and Haley are suddenly smiling. This weekend may end up being more fun than I expected.

"Pan, you asshole, would you quit smiling? It's not funny. A mani-pedi? Hair styling?"

"It's the Victoria's Secret thing that has me smiling. I keep trying to imagine you on naughty girl underwear and a filmy nightgown."

"I don't know if I can do the seductive routine that goes with such an outfit, Pan. At least not with conviction."

"I realize you don't have a seductive bone in your body, Tink. That may be the sexiest thing about you. But you can be very girlie and romantic, and the lacy underwear will go well with that too. Try something white and virginal."

"Somehow, I don't think Brooke will approve of that."

"I don't think there's anyone better at matching the girl to the outfit. She might surprise you."

"I think it's time, Pan. We should get ready."

A couple of weeks back, Tink came home with a Beretta thirty-two pistol, which she described as the small gun for people with big hands, plus ammo, ankle holster and a conceal-carry permit in my name. That last is a bit of a conjuring act, since they are only allowed in North Carolina for people over twenty-one. At any rate, I've been to the range with my new toy a couple of times, acquiring enough proficiency not to shoot myself in the foot while trying to draw. This is the first time we are going hunting with me packing. I still take the taser as well, first because shooting people generates a lot of paperwork, her words, and that capturing our prey, not killing it, is the desired outcome, her words again. I guess the firearm, like me, is just insurance.

Like the other times, we don't see anything out of the ordinary. What we see is mostly a few young people walking around in groups. Lone girls walking at night are becoming rare, as the city is very much aware of the predator loose in the night.

I've never seen a girl that uncomfortable at the salon. I can see that she dislikes being touched by strangers and she really doesn't care much for the results. Of course, that makes the experience pointless for her, but it does amuse me some. Besides, the discreet Chanel cut and waving added to her thin blonde hair complements beautifully her oval face and the light green nails just look cute.

She is as tense as a violin string when we come out of the Salon. Finally, I turn to her and grab her face with both my hands. "Come, Tink. It wasn't so bad. And you do look very nice." I give her a tight hug, which, at first, she responds stiffly, but slowly relaxes in my arms, hugging me back.

"Thanks, Brooke."

"What do you wear to sleep, Tink?"

"When we are at Nate and Hales I use Pan's t-shirts and panties." She is looking at me innocently as she speaks, but she knows I'm having a hard time."When we're at home, I sleep naked."

"So, you have no use for nighties."

"Well, Pan asked me to buy some naughty girl underwear and a filmy nightgown."

"Let me guess. Romantic white or light color stuff."

"Yes. He said I don't have a single seductive bone in my body, but that fancy underwear could also be romantic, girlie and fun."

"That's right. Broody knows his stuff. I need a better look at what we are working with."

We go into the Victoria's Secret store and head to the fitting rooms. I sit down and look at her. "All right, Tink, undress. Just keep your panties."

The first impression is the compact, well defined muscles. Beyond that, she quite gorgeous, tiny and beautifully proportioned, high B-cup breasts, broad shoulders, graceful neck, high well defined waist, long legs, a healthy zero-size model with unusual looks and a unique feline grace. I slide my fingers softly along her back and buttock, just for the feel of silky skin with taut muscle underneath.

"Wendy."

"Tink."

"I'm bisexual, sweety. You're driving me crazy."

I look into her eyes, and her pupils are, indeed, very dilated. Her nipples are erect like two pink buttons. Seeing her like this, I can't avoid becoming a little aroused myself, although I never really ran in that direction. "I'm sure our boy toy will help you deal with that later, Tink." For a moment, instead of being jealous of him, I envy him a bit. I wouldn't mind helping her myself.

"Just wait here. I'll pick up a few things for you to try." I choose two sets, a white one, with lace panties and bra, a corset and a filmy kimono, and a simple g-string and half-cup in pale green, with a light pink babydoll, I notice the top of her tat when she tries the g-string. "Can you show me your ink?"

"Only if you show me yours."

She is still pretty aroused. What the hell. I unbutton my pants and pull it down, showing my red panties and the little Chinese character.

"When did you get it?"

"About a year before he got his. I woke up one morning with a horrible hangover, naked, a senior football player in my bed and this tat. I had gone to a party the night before. I was pretty annoyed at the time, but I've grown to love it since." Specially after I put a copy of it elsewhere. "Show me yours.".

She pull her panties down. "DWW. Hmm... " She looks expectant at me. So, a little intimate guessing game. "Just change. We have other places to visit." I keep rolling the puzzle in my head, and the answer comes to me when I see a janitor mopping up the floor. "Of course! Dangerous when wet." Tink squeals, gives me a huge smile, grabs my face and plants a quick one in my lips.

"You just joined a club that only had one member."

"Broody. How long did it take him?"

"Ten seconds."

"He is pretty clever, that one. How many tried and failed?"

"Many. I'm a bit of a reformed slut, Brooke."

"I'm sorry. He did it to me too."

"It wasn't him. That game had already bored me long before he came along."

We buy another four outfits for her, two pairs of shoes, some make-up, and accessories, making a sizable dent in her bank account. Along the way, she tells me about growing up in Santa Barbara, her father, previous boyfriends and girlfriends and her desire to be some kind of cop. I tell her stories about Tree Hill and the people there. She is great company, sharp and sweet, a good listener, plain spoken and utterly without artifice. She makes no effort to hide the cute crush she has on me, and I respond by gently flirting with her. The only subject we avoid completely is our boy. I can hardly remember the last time I had such a pleasant afternoon.

We drive in her hybrid to their place. We walk in with our bags, dropping everything in a sofa, while she goes fix us an iced tea. About ten minutes later Lucas walks in. He is sweaty, dirty and looks beyond tired. He brightens up when he sees us, and I nearly break down, when I realize the smile and the bright eyes are not directed at me. "Wow, Tink. I love the hair. You look fantastic."

"Thanks. You may thank Wendy. There's a bunch of outfits I want to show you later."

"Thanks Brooke. I'll be happy to see the new outfits. Right now I need a shower. You girls may stay and take your tea, I'll be out in a bit."

After he goes into the bathroom, Tink turns to me. "Wendy, Thank you very much. I really enjoyed our afternoon. I need to take care of him, now. Can you make your way back to Nate and Hales? Turn right out the door and right again at the corner. Their home is a block down. We'll see you in a couple of hours."

"That's fine, Tink. I loved the afternoon too. I'll see you in a couple of hours. Bye." I walk down the street, imagining her helping him scrub, washing his hair, drying him up and giving him a deep rub for his sore muscles. Cuddling with him for a much needed nap. She is a great girl and she really cares for him. For months, thinking of him with Peyton would fill me with anger. Thinking of him with her just makes me envious and sad. I'm not going to get between them. She deserves him, I don't. I really need to get back to my work.

As she comes into the bathroom I'm sitting down on the tub, hot water pouring over my head and shoulders, too tired to move. "Hey Tink."

She takes off her clothes and sits behind me in the tub, shampooing my hair and giving me a heavenly scalp rub. "It was a great afternoon, Pan. Even the salon wasn't that bad."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, beautiful."

"I have the hots for your ex, Pan. She is so sexy. That voice of hers nearly drives me crazy."

I laugh. "I know exactly what you mean Tink. For as long as she was mine, I could hardly keep my hands off her."

"You're just weak Pan. I'm not nearly as hot, and you can't keep your hands off me either."

"You have no idea how hot you are, Tink. With Brooke it's her voice. With you is the way you move."

"She was attracted to me as well. I mean, she is clearly not into girls, but she was, at least a little, into me."

"Now, that's a bit of a surprise. She lived with Peyton, Haley and Rachel, all three very hot girls, and I never caught even a whiff of interest from her."

"She didn't respond to my body, sweety. She responded to my arousal. She really got me all hot and bothered, Pan. I need some input from you."

"I'll try to rise to the occasion."

For the first time since I've known her, Tink actually spends some time getting ready. She comes out wearing a bottle green miniskirt, a flowing white blouse with a deep neckline,a green belt, low white wedges, a wood piece necklace and a bit of make-up. "You look good enough to eat, beautiful."

She smiles and does a pirouette.

We walk into Nate and Hales' home and the adults are sitting around, sipping wine. Nate gives a smile and a wolf whistle. "Looking good supergirl! I guess shopping with, Brooke actually worked."

Brooke also smiles. "Beautiful, Tink. And I can see Broody helped you with your little problem.."

"He can be very helpful."

"I know."

Haley turns to me. "I can see you're in trouble, Bil. These two are beginning to gang up on you."

"So, you two went to Tree Hill. What did you see there?"

"Pan introduced me to Karen, Deb and Lily. I really liked them, specially Karen."

"Karen is the closest thing to a mother I ever had," says Brooke.

"She did say she cares for you two like daughters. She also mentioned she talks to Brooke on the phone every week."

"That's right."

"Pan took me to the Rivercourt, to the school, where he showed me the place where he found Peyton and where Dan shot Keith. We also went on a picnic on the beach, near Dan's beach house."

Haley sighs. "That spot on the beach holds dear memories for all of us."

"Our first kiss was on the Rivercourt. But it was on the beach that we agreed to become a couple."

"Hey, big brother, do you want to do Thanksgiving at the beach house this year? We could all stay there."

"My mom is not going to be around. She is going to join Andy in his yacht, and they are going to be sailing around the world. Deb will be around, though."

"Would you consider joining us Brooke?"

"I would love to. I'll try to talk Peyton into coming too."

"She will probably be living in Savannah with Jake and Jenny."

"What about your dad, Tink? Any chance he would join us?"

"I'll try to convince him, but I suspect he will be game. He is dying to meet you guys."

Dinner is served, and we eat like old friends. At some point Jamie wakes up and joins us, and the conversation lasts for a while. Around eleven, Tink and I prepare to leave, mostly because we are still going hunting tonight. As we are leaving, Brooke pulls Tink aside.

"Sweetie, I would like to ask you a favor. I want to design a couple of outfits specially for you, to include in CoB Spring catalog. I want you to do a shooting with these pieces, and maybe do the runway during our presentation. That means two trips to New York, all expenses included, for you and Broody, in addition to a bit of change. The first trip would be in a month or so, just a weekend, and the second around February, during the New York Fashion Week. You could stay at my place both times."

"I'd love to do it, Brooke. I can't answer immediately, because my image rights are partially owned by UFC, but I suspect they are going to be thrilled. I'll call my agent and get back to you."

"I knew you were a martial artist, I had no idea you were a professional fighter."

"I'm, unofficially, the belt holder for the female strawweight class. I'm eight and oh, which means eight official fights, all of which I won. They haven't established a belt for this class yet, but they are talking about it. I'll probably get on a card at some point this year."

"It's a good thing that supergirl is the most even tempered person I've ever met. If she ever got mad..."

"You know, Nate, learning to keep your cool is part of advanced martial arts training. For obvious reasons."

"Bye, guys, we will see you tomorrow."


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

We've been at it for about an hour. Tink is a couple of blocks ahead of me, in a poorly iluminated side street. I can barely see her, and that just because she is wearing a light yellow minidress. She is walking a little erratically, in between the sidewalk and the street. I sense, or hear, a noise behind me, and when I turn around I see Brooke doing a fast jog along a cross street. I break cover and start running after her. "Bait, I just spotted Brooke jogging north on Rose. I'm going after her."

"I'm cutting across to try to intercept her at the corner of Maple." That's a couple of blocks north from where we are. I turn the corner about ten seconds after I lost sight of Brooke, but I can't see her. "I'm looking north along Rose and I lost visual."

"Just look for her, and be careful. I'll be coming from the North in about a minute."

I look around, she might have seen me coming and hid behind a tree or a bush. There was no time for her to reach the other corner. I walk slowly and strain my ears, and I hear some slight shuffling from behind a hedge I've just passed. "I hear something, fifty yards past the corner, behind a hedge in front of number 227."

"On my way."

I go around the hedge, and there they are. Brooke struggling and a big man wearing dark clothes and a ski mask kneeling on top of her, one hand one her mouth and another ripping her clothes.

"I have visual. Target attacking Brooke. Hurry up bait. I'm doing something."

"Be careful. E.T.A. Thirty seconds."

I speak loud. "Hey!" He turns around and growls. He begins to get up, ready to bolt, but as he is getting up Brooke grabs his mask and pulls it, giving me a clear view of the fucker's face. There was no wayI was letting him escape, but that changes the game. There is enough light to see the jowl, the deep set eyes and the receding hairline. He realizes I made him, and decides to come after me. He pulls a double edged, black blade knife from somewhere and comes straight at me.

"He's got a knife, and he's coming at me."

"Lucas?"

"Stay down, Brooke."

I drop into a crouch, hoping that looking dangerous will give him enough pause to either let Tink arrive or give me a chance to go for my gun. No such luck. The fucker comes straight at me, bringing the knife on a wide downwards arc. I dodge aside, and try to give him a straight kick on the side of the knee. As he staggers after missing his strike, and my kick connects with his thigh, getting nothing more than a grunt.

He comes at me again, this time grabbing my shoulder with his left hand, bringing the knife in an upwards arc, aiming at my abdomen. I twist around to his left side, away from the knife and grab his left hand with both of mine. I twist his arm and, with all I've got, I bring his elbow straight down on my shoulder, with a loud crack, and a loud scream. I let go of his arm and step forward, just in time to avoid a sidewipe with the knife. We face off again, his eyes lost in a fog of pain and rage. He is hurt, but he is not done. I finally find the time to grab the taser out of my jacket pocket, and smile at him. His rage turns into fear. He is still hesitating when Tink's sharp voice comes out of the darkness. "All right, motherfucker. Drop the knife or take one between the eyes." She is walking and pointing her little gun at him, from about thirty yards away. He looks at Tink and figures she is for real, dropping the knife. I kick it to the hedge and step back, grabbing my gun from the ankle holster.

"Outstanding, Pan! Just cover him." I point the gun at him while she does a quick search of his person. She finds a reefer, gum and keys, but no other weapon, and no id either. She fishes a ziptie out of her clutch, zips his ankles together and leaves him lying belly down, moaning softly to himself. She speaks softly in his ear. "Don't move, motherfucker, or I'll break the other arm."

I'm still holding the gun loosely in his direction when I feel Brooke coming from behind me, grabbing my waist and bringing her face to my chest. "Luke?" I look at Tink, and she signals all clear. I put the pistol in my pocket and wrap both my arms around Brooke. "It's ok now, pretty girl. Everything is going to be fine."

"But, Luke?"

"I'll answer all your questions later, sweetheart. Just hold on." As Tink calls the police I take a few steps away from our prisioner with Brooke, return the pistol to the ankle holster and wrap my jacket around her, Sitting on the ground with Brooke wrapped on my arms, crying into my chest. I keep saying "It's ok Brooke, everything is fine now."

The police arrives, than the Sheriff, and a couple of ambulances. They cordon off the area of the attack and the fight, and take our perp away. The paramedic is examining Brooke when the Sheriff approaches, leading Tink and I to the side. "So, kids, just the highlights."

"I'm Madeleleine Ward and this is Lucas Scott. We are freshmen at Clarksson..."

"I know who you are, girl. I spent an hour with your father on the phone when you came to live here. I was supposed to keep an eye on you, but with the fallout from that animal's spree, that fell through the cracks. From your father's stories, I should have known you'd be up to something."

"We've been running a sting for the rapist using me as bait, for about a month. Luke here is my backup."

"So what happened?"

"The vic is Brooke Davis, eighteen, an old friend of Luke and his family. She is visiting from New York for the weekend. She decided to take a jog in the middle of the night, and, as luck may have it, Luke here saw her run by during our sweep. He followed her and found the rapist attacking her. The vic took his mask as he was ready to bolt, and Luke got a good look at him. The perp decided to attack Luke with a knife. A fight followed, where Luke managed to break the perp's left arm at the elbow. I arrived as the perp was about to attack Luke again, and made him surrender at gunpoint. We called the police."

"I know your capabilities. What kind of training Lucas have?"

"One month of self-defence and firearms with me. He's been in hairy situations before and kept his cool. He is also extremely bright, resourceful and a gifted athlete. I mean, you can see by the results here I had good reason to trust him."

"You both have concealed carry permits?"

"Yes."

"This was foolish, guys, but I the truth is that you two just got my nuts out of the fire. The fellow you caught is Jason Fox, and he was in our suspect list, and under surveillance. He just gave us the slip tonight, and god knows how many girls beyond your friend Brooke you actually saved. We had indications that he was about to move away, and we had nothing to hold him. I actually called the Feds on Friday, and I was about to hand them the case. Outstanding job guys, specially you, Lucas. I'll need a full statement from you two, but, for now, thank you. My report you give you two full credit for the collar. That was part of the point, wasn't it? Early entrance at Quantico?" Tink just nods. "Come to the office Monday morning for your statement. We'll will take Ms. Davis to the hospital for a full exam. It seems that all she has are a few bruises, but the full exam is needed to complement her statement. Just take her home after the hospital releases her. We'll talk to her tomorrow afternoon.."

"You going to call my father?"

"Not if you do."

"Ok."

"Pan."

"Tink."

"I'm so fucking proud of you. I almost died when I realized what you were up against."

"I'm just glad we were able to save Brooke. And thank you for the training."

"Keeping your head with half-assed training having your life and Brooke's on the line. Even now, you're talking to me like it was all in a day's job."

"Oh, I know I'm due a breakdown. I'm just holding it in for Brooke."

"You were born to do this, Pan.I now get the rules againt getting romantically involved with a partner. I was pretty much a basket case when I got here. If he had hurt you, I would have just shot him."

I smile at her. "Somehow, I doubt that."

"I think they are ready to move Brooke to the hospital. Stay with her. I'll go home, get the car, and meet you there, ok?"

"That's fine. See you in a bit." She leaves with a quick kiss.

Brooke was just sitting outside the ambulance. "Did you hear all that?"

"And the talk with the Sheriff too. God, Broody, I haven't even begun to process this. You know that having you coming out and saving me has been a fantasy of mine forever. I was actually thinking of you while that guy was attacking me. Having you saving me, fighting that guy with your bare hands like a goddamn action hero. She starts crying. You're no hero, Broody. You're just a geek with a killer body and a heart condition. She punches me slightly with her fists in the chest. I thought we were both dead, you hear me, dead. It was like psycho Derek all over again. What the fuck were you and Tink doing? Since when you go around armed?"

"It's a long story, Brooke. First things first. All of us, Nate, Hales Tink and I owe you a huge apology."

"Why?"

"We knew about the rapist. He's been attacking young women in town for six months. You would have been the fourth victim, that we know about. We should have warned you about going out alone at night. It just didn't occur to any of us. I'm very, very sorry."

"It's ok, Broody. No harm done. Just another fucked up source of nightmares."

"You should see a therapist. I've been seeing one for a few weeks now. Can't say that it's helping, but it might."

The Paramedics close the door to the ambulance and start on our way to the hospital. After we get there, the staff gets us into a waiting room, and informs us it will be a while until they get to us.

Brooke gets back to out interrupted conversation. "Why the therapist, Broody?"

"Coping with loss. Keith, basketball, you, any possibility of ever having a relationship with Dan. I'm just beginning to pull myself back together. Tink convinced me to do it."

She places a hand on my chest. "You didn't really lose me."

"You might have been the worst loss, Brooke. I was done. You were the one for me. I saw myself married to you, raising a family with you. You were my forever. I believed it was the same for you. You took it all away, and until a month ago, I couldn't even understand why. I made my way back to basketball, but you left no hope of ever finding my way back to you."

"I'm sorry, Luke. But you have Tink now. She is really good to you."

"I know. I am in love with Tink. But she is not my future."

"Why?"

"She has plans for her future that do not include a husband and children. She made it very clear when we started. She would be my Tinkerbell, but if I wanted forever, I would need to find my Wendy."

"She might change her mind."

"I've only known her for a month, but I wouldn't count on that. As things stand, the day she gets hired by the FBI we are done. And she is like you. If she sets her sights on something, she will get it. I've known it from the start, Brooke. I love her, but I hold her lightly."

"She wants us back together. That's why she calls me Wendy."

"That's right."

"What about you? Would you want to get back together?"

I look into her eyes, for the first time in seven months. I can see the fear, but I see something I never expected to see. I see hope. "Yes, I would. In a second. There is a condition, though. I can quit my romantic involvement with Tink. But I can never shut her out of my life."

"That's fine. I know how loyal you are. I wouldn't expect anything different."

"Does this mean..."

"Not now, Broody. You are in good hands, and we are not in a hurry. I'll make you a promise. Until I tell you different, I will not get involved with anyone else. I need to process this. I also need to talk with Tink. But don't count me out of your life yet."

Brooke snuggles up against me as I keep an arm around her. A few minutes later, Tink comes in, smiles at us, and snuggles up on the other side. Even with the difficult night we had, there's something right with the universe, if I can have both these wonderful women in my arms at the same time.

After a while, Brooke gets up and pulls a wheelchair, sitting in front of us. "I have two questions for the both of you. First, what were you doing tonight? And second, what happened to my Broody, that suddenly he became an action hero?"

"Let me say something about the second. Your Broody has always been an action hero. Shame on you for not noticing it." She counts it on her fingers. "He went into a burning building to save his father. He went into a school locked during a gun incident to save Peyton. He saved Peyton from psycho Derek. He investigated and solved Keith's murder by himself, and saved his mother and his sister from falling into the murderer's clutches. I won't even count the Duke dorm incident. Fighting an armed assailant to save you tonight is just another example. Pan has consistently displayed bravery and a cool head under dangerous circumstances consistent with a war hero. Sure, I gave him a few self defense classes and trained him to use a firearm. But the hero's heart and head, that he was born with. I don't like Peyton, but she has this merit. She always recognized that in him."

Brooke bends her head down, visibly ashamed. "I never really looked at the whole picture. I know this instinctively. There is no place I feel safer than in his arms. I'm sorry."

"Don't be, pretty girl. Tink has a rather unique way of looking at things."

"The answer to your first question is that we have been hunting your assailant, using me as bait."

"That sounds dangerous."

"It's less than you might think. If he had attacked me, odds are overwhelming that I could overpower him without getting hurt. And Pan here was my backup, in case something went wrong."

"But why do it?"

"Two reasons. One, to take a piece of garbage out of the street. Second, I want to get into the early training FBI program, and a collar like this one helps."

"I had a third reason. I couldn't stop her from doing it, and she was safer with backup, even poorly trained."

"Are you done now?"

"With the night excursions, yes. I would like to continue training with self-defense and firearms."

"Why?"

"Firearms because I'm good at it, and I enjoy doing "bang". It's a boy thing. Self-defense, well, I like Tink beating the crap out of me. Call me a masochist, if you want."

At seven in the morning, I got a frantic call from Haley. "Luke, do you know where Brooke is? She is not in the room, and we don't know what happened."

"Calm down, sis. Brooke is with us. She is perfectly fine. We have a long story to tell you guys, but we haven't slept a wink tonight. We have a little something to celebrate tonight, so I'm inviting everybody to have dinner at Chili's on me. Tonight at seven?"

"That's fine, bil. We'll meet you there. Bye."

We got back home a little while later. Brooke took first dibs in the shower, and got one of my t-shirts and boxers as pj's. Tink and I went second, and put on pj's as well. I took the opportunity to briefly report on the new status of things between Brooke and I. After our shower, we quickly found that me, Brooke and then Tink made an effective spooning arrangement, and proceeded to recover some of our lost sleep.

We woke up with the alarm at one, in a glorious three-way tangle. Tink and I changed and we drove to the Scotts for a toothbrush and change for Brooke. Haley looked up from the book she was reading as we walked in. "Hey guys, that looks an awful lot like a walk of shame. Brooke Davis, did you sleep with these two?"

Brooke gives Haley one of her signature dimpled smiles. "Sure did, tutormom. Right between them too. It was wonderful." Tink giggled.

Before Haley could open her mouth I added. "We slept, sis, that's all. A lot has happened since last night, but we don't have the time to go into it. We have an appointment at the Sheriff's office at three, and we still want to eat something before that."

Brooke heads into my room to change, and Haley gives me a sharp look. "Something has changed."

"Yes. Nothing concrete. Let me just say that, last night, Brooke and I took a big step in the direction of staying in each other's lives."

"But what happened?"

"It's a long story. Wait for dinner, ok?"

We got to the police station, and we heard the Sheriff calling us from the back. "Come down here, guys." We got into his office and there were two people with him, and older man in modest worker clothes and a pretty woman in her late thirties, on a yellow a summer dress and sandals. These are Norman Byers and Melinda Roscoe. They are the father and the mother of the first and second victims of Mr. Fox. They wanted to meet personally the young people who captured Mr. Fox. Well, these are Lucas Scott, and Madeleine Ward. The brunnete is Brooke Davis, the young woman Lucas and Madeleine saved from becoming the fourth victim last night.

Mr. Byers spoke in both their names. "We would like to thank you on behalf of our daughters. They were having a hard time recovering, knowing that the animal who did it was still at large. Thank you."

"You're welcome Mr. Byers and Ms. Roscoe. Please transmit our sincerest desire that they can put this horrible experience behind them."

The Sheriff escorts the parents out and turns back to us. "Miss Davis, I understand you are going back to New York today."

"No sir, I changed my flight to Tuesday afternoon. I need to stay with my friends a few more days to recover from last night's experience."

"Very well. I'd like you to come tomorrow, say at ten, so that we can review your statement together." He picks up a little pile of forms from his desk. "For now, would you please fill these out, and include a full written account of last night's assault on your person?" You can use the table in the meeting room next door. You two, follow me."

He took us to his office, bid us to sit in a pair of chairs in front of his desk, and sat on his chair.

He stared at us for a few seconds before starting. "Very well, Mr. Scott, Miss Ward..."

"You may call us Lucas and Maddie, sir."

"Lucas and Maddie, I understand you both have part-time jobs, you work at Craig's Auto Shop, and you are a dispatcher for Campus security, is that right?" We nod.

"How much is Craig paying you, Lucas?"

"Fifteen an hour. He said it would go to twenty-five in a couple of months."

"I know how much Maddie makes at her job. Maddie, did you call your father?"

"Not yet, sir. I'll do it tonight."

"Yes, do it. Very well, I want to offer you two a job. Part-time deputy."

Tink and I exchange a glance. Tink is definitely interested, me, I'm not so sure.

"What do you have in mind, sir?"

"Well, this entire Department consist of two dozen deputies, four administrative assistants and myself. There is not enough investigative work to be done to justify having a full time detective, so, when investigation is needed, I usually do it myself, and I use my subordinates as assistants as I can. Well, this doesn't work terrible well, because not even one of them is actually suited for this kind of work. So, I'd be hiring the two of you as my junior detectives. At least, if I tell you to run a canvas, or examine a crime scene, or simply follow up some lead on the internet, I can count on you to spot anything important I might need to know. Well, the pay is twenty-five per year, plus benefits, for a twenty hour a week job. If there is no investigating, the two of you can just stay home and screw each other until you're blue in the face. If there is something to investigate, I expect you to put that ahead of your other obligations, except maybe coaching the Bulldogs, young man, and no my other deputies will be subordinate to you two, but use discretion. Most of them are more than twice your age, and might take exception at being ordered about by a kid. You get the use of the department's resources, gym and range, and I expect you two to do full firearms certification, study our procedure manual and, Maddie, I would like you to run an unarmed combat class twice a week at the gym. So, what do you say?"

Again I exchange a glance with Tink. She has no doubt, this is clearly a step towards her dreams. For me, it's an interesting new challenge, a bit more money, and, most important, an opportunity to be close to her. "We accept, sir. However, I think we are both supposed to give two-week notice."

"Leave that to me." He picks up two silver stars, and two pistols with their holsters and places them in front of us. "I'm antedating your hiring by three weeks. The sting operation you were running was quietly authorized by this office three weeks ago. Make sure your reports reflect that. Come back on Monday at eight. There are a large number of details to straighten out, but primarily, I need to introduce you to the troops."

"Do we use uniforms?"

"No. I'll have one uniform made for each one of you, but that's just for formal occasions. Slacks and button shirts for you and below the knee skirts for you. Our constituents are conservative folk. You'll get a lot of respect for catching Mr. Fox, which should compensate for the obvious disadvantage of your age, and the fact that the two of you are out-of-towners. At least Mr. Scott is from North Carolina, and a basketball hero to boot. A lot of people around here remember that three pointer at the buzzer during State's final last year."

We leave Sheriff's office.

"Pan, do you have any idea how much this will help with my FBI application in three years? Besides, this job is worth a semester's credit in the criminalistics major."

"Honestly, my head is still spinning. The last thing I would ever think of becoming is a cop. I'm thrilled to the bone with the idea of being your partner, though. Also, I think we are going to go back calling each other Luke and Maddie at work."

"Brooke."

"What? I'm busy. Damn form."

"We're cops now. By the powers of time travel, we were even cops last night. Detectives Scott and Ward, at your service."

Brooke lifts her head, takes in the stars and pistols, and starts laughing. So do we. It takes about five minutes before we manage to regain our proper professional composure. A couple of minutes later the Sheriff comes in and tosses a set of keys in the table. "The keys are for the station, lock when you leave, and for the marked SUV outside. Just use the siren at your hearts content, and get it out of your system." He closes the door behind him, and we go back laughing.

"Broody, will you give me a ride on your police car?"

"Can we make out on the back seat?"

"Making out on the back seat of a police car? Wow. It's almost worth getting back with you just for that. I guess you can do it with Tink, I mean, Detective Ward for now."

"It's not much her style. Tink is adventuresome in other ways."

"Hell, Brooke, just borrow my boyfriend, I don't mind. I'll drive and run the siren, so you guys can do it on the go, and with the whole town looking."

"Get out of here, you two. I need to finish these damn forms."

We finally get to Chili's about ten past seven, and Nate, Haley and Jamie are already inside. "Hi guys!"

He turns to me. "Did you guys steal a Sheriff's Department car?"

"That's part of the story. Let's begin from the beginning. Well, you know about the rapist."

"I heard he got caught last night," Haley says.

"Even before we started dating, Tink was running a sting operation, using herself as bait. She would walk around the most likely places, between the hours of one and three, Fridays and Saturdays, hoping the rapist would attack her."

"That's an awfully dangerous thing to do, Maddie."

"It's not as dangerous as you might think. The victims indicated the rapist did not use a firearm, and anything else, It was very likely I could handle."

"After we became an item, she had to tell me about it. I tried to dissuade her to do it, but it became clear she would continue, no matter what I thought. So I decided to help her."

"He became my backup. As I did my run, he would follow very discreetly, a couple of blocks back, ready to intervene if anything went wrong. To make him more effective, I begun training him in self defense and firearms. He is a pretty good student at both."

"Yesterday night, Brooke decided to go jogging at one in the morning. She crossed our path, and got attacked by the rapist."

Haley gets upset. "He raped you, Tigger?"

"No. Broody intervened. He interrupted the guy. He was going to run, but I grabbed his ski mask, and Broody got a good look at his face. The guy pulled a knife and tried to kill Luke. There was a fight, and after a few moves, Luke broke the guy's arm. Then Tink arrived and made him surrender at gunpoint. The police arrested the creep, and I spent most of the night at the hospital, so they could register my bruises."

"This afternoon we went to the Sheriff's office, to do Brooke's statement, and the Sheriff pulled us to his office and offered us a job as part-time deputies, acting as assistant detectives. We accepted."

"So now, Tink and I are cops! And we show them our stars."

Nate starts laughing, and pretty soon, we are all doing it again. "It's even better, little brother. All the other deputies have to follow our orders. We are not just cops. We are boss cops."

"He even used time-travel Not only we are cops, we were cops the past three weeks, so our operation was official."

"So, big brother, what are we celebrating after all? Your new job?"

"No. We're celebrating the arrest of Mr. Jason Fox, the Clarksson rapist." I raise my beer. "May he rot in jail for forever."

"Hear, hear."

Tink and I head home on our badass police car. "I need to call Daddy, Pan. I can't put it off any longer."

"What time is it in California?"

"It's a bit past five."

"Well, go ahead and call."

She calls, and at first they are just talking, she tells him the story and there are long silences from her side. She begins to sound upset, and by the time we get home, there is shouting and Tink is in tears. When we step into out living room, she hands me the phone. "Here. He wants to talk to you."

"Mr. Ward?"

"Lucas. I'm disappointed. You let my daughter use herself as bait playing vigilante against a dangerous criminal?"

"I'm sorry sir. I didn't let her do anything. I was against this plan, and I made my thoughts clear on the matter. However, my experience with Maddie is that I can't stop her from doing whatever she wants, anymore than I can stop the sunrise. So, I helped her, and tried to make her safer. I'm surprised you thought it could go any other way."

He sighs. "Yes, I know I couldn't stop her either. It just drives me crazy... Well, all right, I take it back. Thank you for watching her back. By the way, she told me how it went down. You did an extraordinary job, young man. Well done. Please, give her back the phone."

They talk some more, and Tink calms down. The phone call ends with her smiling and saying "I love you too, Daddy."

"He is coming here."

"When?"

"He said he would be here Wednesday, and that he would leave on Sunday."

"Do you know what is the agenda?"

"He wants to ride with us. He wants to talk to Sheriff, get a better idea of what we are supposed to do, and he wants to make sure you're a proper partner for me. That's my Dad. The fact that you're my boyfriend and effectively living with me wouldn't bring him here. But a law enforcement job and two rookies riding together? That he has to check out personally. By the way, he will try to tell us how to do our job. Just listen carefully. He's the best at what he does."

"I'm looking forward to meeting him. Should I move out?"

"Nah. Our co-habitation is no secret. We'll just stay at the Scotts for the duration."

We begin making out, and soon enough, we are in our bed, Tink straddling me as we look into each others eyes. The sex is as good as always, but something different has made its way between us.

"Were you thinking of her?"

"No Tink. It's the other way around. It's the possibility that, pretty soon, you will not be my girl anymore. I'm going to miss this."

"You will have her."

"I know, but I'll still miss us, just like I still miss being with her."

"I'll have you as my partner. I really like that, Pan." She smiles. "I will tell you this. When we are not together anymore, I'll bring other boys to my bed. I want you to be jealous. Visibly. Just to show me you still care."

"You can count on that. How will you show that you still care?"

"I'll show my pleasure with your jealousy. It will drive the boys crazy."

I'm reading a novel when the knock comes. I open the door. "Hi, Brooke."

She comes in, and looks into our bedroom, where Tink is lying down wearing one of my t-shirts. "You were expecting me."

"Yes."

"I hate being so predictable."

"You're not predictable. You're my Cheerie, and I know you."


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

It's one in the morning, and I'm kneeling behind a bush in the company of a young deputy called Tim Smith, of all things. We are watching the back of a house we think is a likely target for a serial burglar that has been operating in the more affluent part of Clarksson for a few weeks. Based on his previous attacks we drew a profile which included houses with secluded back entrances, empty, no alarm and affluent residents. After some canvassing, we arrived at four likely candidates, and our current pick just seemed a bit more tempting than the others. This is the second night we are doing this. The burglar breaks in through a back door or window, and takes his time in locating small valuables, escaping on foot. Maddie and her father are standing two hundred yards, covering a different approach to the same house.

A shadow within the shadows passes about ten yards of my bush, moving in the direction of the house. I put a finger to my lips to indicate to my companion to be very quiet. The shadow approaches the back door of the house, and uses a cloth-covered fist to break a glass panel on the door, unlocking it and going in.

I whisper in my communicator. "Target in play. Approach was from the south. We stay quiet for another fifteen minutes, and then approach the back door of the house, still hidden from direct view. Maddie and her father also come closer. The key is catching him after the burglary, since then his loot can be used as evidence. About an hour later he comes out, twice as wary as he was coming in. As Maddie positions herself, Tim and I stand up, Tim turns on a big flashlight in his eyes, while I point my pistol at him, saying "Police, freeze!" He takes off, running away from me, straight into Maddie's arms. She drops him with a foot to his ankle, and frisks him, while I cover him with my gun. No weapons. She handcuffs him. We bag a small backpack our perp was carrying as evidence. "Target apprehended."

Tim escorts our perp to the street, reading him his rights along the way. Seconds later, a police car approaches to haul him to the office.

"Maddie, Lucas. Excellent job. Textbook takedown. Great investigation too. Even very green, the two of you make a formidable team."

"Thanks, daddy."

"Thank you, Joe.."

The training facility belonged to the North Carolina State Police, but it was made available to local law enforcement. Aside from the usual range, it provided a maze of rooms, open spaces, corridors with sharp corners and targets that would move or pop up in accordance to a central control. It was designed for training of police officers in real life situations involving multiple perpetrators, or hostages, or other complex tactical problems. Joe was standing behind Mike, facility's manager, as he put Lucas and Maddie through a series of exercises designed for a pair acting in concert.

Through the speakers, Joe and Mike, followed the quiet dialogue Maddie and Lucas kept running as they watched them through the cameras..

"To the left, sweep." Lucas shoots.

"Target down."

"Crouch as you go over the corner. Sweep"

"Nothing here."

"Look to the right."

"Target on the left.". Maddie shoots twice.

"Target down. Move to the right doorway."

"Room clear."

Maddie kept tactical control, directing Lucas as a second pair of eyes and hands. He followed her instructions, but giving smart feedback and making small strategic suggestions as they went along.

A buzz sounds, with a recording "simulation complete." This was the sixth exercise run Maddie and Lucas did that day.

Joe turns to Mike. "They look pretty impressive to me."

"They are very effective as a team. She is extremely impressive, both in speed and accuracy. Her field command is very good. He is average, both in speed and accuracy, but he can follow her directions consistently and intelligently. I want to do a couple of scenarios with Lucas by himself, to see how he does without her directions."

"All right, set it up."

This time, Joe and Maddie stand in the control room behind Mike as Lucas goes through the scenarios.

Joe laughs softly. "He is a very fast learner. He's already incorporated a big piece of your tactical doctrine into his thinking."

"He is one of the brightest people I've ever met. Strategically brilliant, and fast on his feet. It shows in his basketball too. Anyways, do we have your blessing?"

"You mean, do I trust him to have your back in a sticky situation? Not even close. But, given what you're likely to face in Clarksson, yes, you have my blessing."

It's a country bar, with a live band and a rowdy Saturday night crowd. We are breaking the law just by being there, but compensate a bit by sticking to sodas. She is turning nineteen today, and although we've celebrated with steaks and a cake at Nathan and Hales earlier, I figured a bit of late-night dancing was not a bad way to end the day. She is wearing tiny jeans skirt, a white button shirt, boots and a little cowboy hat, and I even found some boots and a string tie myself. We are not very good at the dancing, but we are certainly enjoying ourselves.

We are at a corner table, nursing our sodas and talking a bit between sets. I pick up the box from my pocket and give it to her. "Happy birthday, beautiful."

She opens it, eyes bright with curiosity. It's a thin gold chain and a small gold pendant of a spider, with eight tiny rubies as eyes. She looks at me, clearly very pleased. "The patient, clever and resourceful hunter."

"I love it, Lucas. Best birthday gift ever."

We are quietly making out at the corner when a commotion erupts at the bar. A man, a very large, very drunk man is screaming and dragging a woman by her arm.

"You whore! You're coming home now."

Surprisingly, given the size and condition of her assailant, she is more mad than scared.

"Let go, you drunken idiot. Hey! Let go! You're hurting me, Bob. Let go!"

All around people are backing off, leaving a clearing around the couple.

Three of the bar's security people are around, but they are reluctant to intervene, given the guy's size and the possibility of hurting the woman. We pull out our shields and signal them to step back quietly. Maddie approaches silently while I speak very loudly. "Sheriff's Department. Let. Her. Go!"

He turns to me and screams "Stay away! Mind your own business..."

Maddie quietly gets to him, grabs his lower lip, twists and pulls it down, dragging him after her towards the door.. Stunned by the pain, the drunken giant lets go of the woman's arm. People make a clearing for Maddie to drag the guy through the door. I follow them outside, keeping a close eye on the crowd, in case more trouble appears from somewhere.

Maddie pulls him to the ground outside the bar and takes three steps back. She decides she can, perhaps, end the evening without the paperwork. The fact that the woman was not afraid suggests that this is not a serious problem. "Go home man, sleep it off."

He gets up slowly, his fury increasing when he takes a good look at Maddie. She is just looking calmly at him. He screams at her. "You little cunt! You hurt me!" He opens his arms and tries to grab her. She ducks, sidesteps and gives him a very sharp kick to the side of the knee with the sole of her boot. Everybody outside can hear the pop of his dislocated knee, as he goes down screaming in pain, holding his leg. I call dispatch on my phone. "Get an ambulance at the Rodeo Grill stat."

The woman comes out of the bar and looks at the man moaning on the ground. I approach her. "Do you want to press charges, ma'm?"

"No. That's my husband Bob. He's kinda harmless, but he has a weak head for liquor. What did you do to him?"

"It's nothing serious, ma'm. My partner dislocated his knee. He's going to be off his feet a few days, limping for a month. We'll arrest him for drunk and disorderly, which should get him out of your hair for a few days, and teach him a lesson."

"Your partner? The pretty little thing that dragged him out here? She dislocated his knee? I'll be damned." She chuckles. "I guess he was asking for it."

"You should go with him to the hospital, ma'm."

"All right. Thanks."

"I'm sorry, beautiful."

"It's part of the job, Luke. Don't sweat it." She touches her new pendant. "It was the best birthday ever."

"Do you want to go fill out the incident report and the charges?"

"We can do that tomorrow. They'll keep Bob at the hospital overnight anyways."

"Dispatch, L&M heading home."

"Copy, sir."

"Luke."

"Yes?"

"I think it's time. We need to wrap this up."

I look into her eyes and sigh. "All right. Last night?"

"Let's make it a good one."

"Dispatch. L&M are off for the night. Any emergencies, direct to the Sheriff."

"Copy, sir. Have fun."

"Thanks."

I wake up to a melancholic disposition and an empty bed. She left me a note "went on a run, see you at the office." I pick up a large garbage bag, and fill it with everything that's mine from around the little house. I walk to our place, dump the contents of the bag on my bed. I hunt for everything Maddie around my room and put it in the bag. I come out of the room with Nate and Hales standing in my way, looking worried.

"What happened Luke? Did you have a fight last night?"

"No, sis. But we did break up."

"Why?"

"It's not a good idea, given our jobs. You lose objectivity."

"That's bullshit, big brother. You're never going to be objective where supergirl is concerned." Of course, he is right, but I don't confirm it.

"There's something else. I'm going to try to get back with Brooke."

"Ah, that makes sense. Does she know that, bil?"

"Kinda."

"What now?"

"We're still partners and friends, guys. It was a friendly parting." Very friendly, in fact. "She's still part of this family."

"Fair enough, big brother. Good luck with Brooke."

"Thanks."

It's called the law of unintended consequences. When the Sheriff hired us, he wanted us as helpers for complicated cases, but not for the day-to-day running of the Department. In practice, whenever there was a situation even a bit out of the ordinary, the deputies called one of us. We were supposed to decide whether to pass the buck to the Sheriff or not. It took a little doing with the Sheriff, to learn the limits of our discretion, but the fact is that the deputies much preferred to bother one of us than the Sheriff, that could get them shit listed, or even fired. What is all meant is that the Sheriff's life became much easier, we became a great deal more involved with our jobs than originally intended, and we were full-time deputies now, doubling our salary.

This weekend, Maddie was in New York, visiting Brooke, so I was it. It started at one in the morning on Saturday, when one of the members of the city council got arrested on a DUI. This one was easy, because the political fallout made it a job for the Sheriff. There were complaints of an overly noisy frat party at two, which again could be solved with a couple of instructions over the radio, then a knifing in a drunken bar fight, which I actually had to get out of bed and go interview the people involved. The victim needed twelve stitches and was released from the emergency room, and the perp was held by the bar owner at gunpoint until the deputies arrived at the scene. I went to the bar, took statements from a couple of witnesses, then went to the office to interview the perp. It was pretty simple, he was regretful, wrote down a confession and signed it without asking for a lawyer. It was seven in the morning by the time I completed the paperwork and went home for breakfast.

Haley was awake in the kitchen. "Lucas! Did you get any sleep?"

"Some. I'm having breakfast, a shower and I'm going back to bed, if you don't mind."

"What was it this time?"

"A knifing in a bar north of town. Stupid drunken fight over nothing. No serious injuries."

Haley gives him a worried look. "Do you really want this job, Luke? I get it was about Maddie at first. But now? It's so harsh."

"The truth, Hales? I don't know. It needs doing, and I'm good at it. To be honest, if I had to choose between coaching and police work, right now, I don't know which I would choose. Give me another six months. Maybe it will become clearer."

The cab drops me at in front of a ten-story building in the lower east side. It's early evening on Friday, and traffic from the airport was miserable. I texted Brooke when the airplane landed, so she should be expecting me. After pressing the button marked Davis, I hear her raspy voice over the intercom, telling me to come up. Brooke is at the door, smiling, as I step out of the elevator.

"Hey, Maddie. So nice to see you. Come on in."

It's a nice condo, with a large living room, dining room, with an open plan kitchen. The furniture is modern chic, arranged with a great deal of taste. There is a large oil painting of a group of cheerleaders in blue uniforms, their features vague, and their postures dynamic. "Peyton?"

"You bet. It's nice, isn't it?"

"She's quite talented. Luke has a couple of her drawings, and I was already impressed. This is quite a step upwards." A tall, shapely redhead comes out of a door, wearing a sexy green dress and white stilettos. "What do you think of this dress, whore... Hey! Who's the pixie?"

"Rachel, Maddie. You have an idea who Rachel is from the book. Maddie is Lucas' girlfriend"

"Ex-girlfriend. Partner now."

"Partner?"

"Lucas and Maddie are cops."

Rachel laughs. "Cops?"

Brooke sighs. "It's a bit of a long, slightly unbelievable story. I'll tell you later. Maddie is here for a shoot. I've designed three Spring collection outfits for her to model."

Rachel walks around me, talking in that annoying nasal twang of hers. "She looks pretty, in a girl next door way, and supple. But why would you use a five-foot model?"

"Are you free tomorrow? Our first shoot is on Miguel's studio at eleven. If you come with us, you'll see why."

"You got it, whore. Bye for now, little blondie."

"Bye, annoying redhead."

Brooke and Rachel have a good laugh at that. After Rachel leaves, Brooke shows Maddie to a guest bedroom. "You can stay here next couple of nights."

"It's fine, Brooke. Thank you."

"You hungry? We have Chinese."

"Yup. I could eat."

Finally Brooke gets around to the monkey in the room. "So, Why did you guys break-up?"

"Didn't you get it when you went to Clarksson? We were never meant to be forever."

"Don't say that. You loved each other."

"We love each other, Brooke. We watch each others back everyday. But we are not romantically involved anymore. I told you before, He loves you. If you want him, you should go after him."

Brooke looks to the ground. "It's not that simple."

I get a little mad. "I'll tell you what is not simple, Brooke Davis. He is gorgeous, smart, kind, strong, and he loves you. Right now, he is available. Simple."

"There's a lot of history, Maddie."

I pause a minute and look into her eyes. I can see anger, sadness and fear. "You're afraid."

"You're damn right I am. I don't know if we could ever make it work. And I don't know if my heart could survive another crash and burn."

"I can't argue with fear, Brooke. That's fine. If you're too afraid to reach out for what you want, you're just going to live with watching someone else grabbing it and walking away. You had a little glimpse of that in that basketball game, didn't you? That doesn't sound like Brooke Davis, though."

 _Jealousy, regret and longing swirling around, shattering my composure and the carefully built mask I present to the world. Damn that boy. In a suit and tie, looking hotter than he ever did in high school. The anger in his eyes shattering my heart, just as it lights a fire between my legs. Lucas Scott, ever the sweet, considerate lover. Last night, I dreamed of him taking me in anger, ripping my clothes off, doing me roughly as he whispered coarse words at me. Where is Peyton now? She took him from me and couldn't even keep him? This girl? Who is she? I saw the way he looks at her. I also saw the way both Scott boys trust her, the way Tutormom likes her. Is he hers now? My heart feels like a stone in my chest. When he went for Peyton, I was sure I was right. I could bear the heartbreak, because I was right. But Peyton is gone, he is moving on. It looks like I made one horrible mistake. I pushed him away, lied to him, and it's too late to fix it. Too late. Damn. I need to pull myself together._

A single tear rolls down Brooke's face. "Yeah." She wipes it with her sleeve, eyes hardening. "It's too late, Maddie. He's made mistakes, and I made mistakes. It's easier to let go."

I put all the contempt I can muster in my eyes and in my voice. "Coward."

She reacts as if stung. I see her fury gathering up, ready to unleash itself at me. Then she looks at me as realizes I'm not even a little bit afraid. I'm just waiting, watching her. Suddenly, she deflates like a balloon, her shoulders down, a look of defeat in her eyes. "Coward."

I put an arm around her shoulders and gather her to me. She cries for a couple of minutes, and then quiets down. I talk softly at her. "There is one important thing you should realize. You don't know him."

"I know he's changed..."

"No. You've never known him."

She gathers herself and looks at me, a little annoyed. "Are you crazy? Of course I did."

"No." I pick up her hands. "All the time you knew Lucas, he was buried under an inhuman load of stress. First it was Nathan and the hazing, then his mother and Keith, his father and so on. You've never seen him without a heavy load in his heart. You haven't seen him splashing around in the kiddie pool with your godson, not a care in the world. Or the way he greets you, lifting his eyes from one of his favorite books and smiling at you as you walk in."

Brooke stares at me, finally realizing the depth of feeling I have for Lucas. "And you let him walk away."

"You did too. I'm letting him go because I can't give him something he needs. And I'm keeping a piece of him. You let him go because you were afraid."

"I can't do anything about my fear, Maddie."

"The heroine is not a heroine because she doesn't feel fear. She is a heroine because she does the right thing despite her fear."

"I'm no heroine, Maddie."

"You sure? Look at what you have made of yourself."

"I owe I lot of it to him."

"I know that." I make a long pause. "It's not only that you never really knew him, not like Haley does. He's changed since last year. He's grown from a great boy into an amazing man."

"He's still a boy, Maddie. He's eighteen."

I smile at her. "You'd be surprised. It's not about age, it's about life. He carries a gun, and the responsibility for the safety of a whole town on his shoulders. It's only been a couple of months, but it's changing him."

Brooke bites her lower lip, eyes distant. "Maybe I should get to know him again."

"Maybe you should."

Lucas wakes up Sunday morning to the sound of laughter from the living room. He checks his clock and starts. Eleven. He went to bed at two, after dealing with the arrest of a pill pusher at a rave the night before. He certainly needed the sleep. He puts on his running shoes, a sweatshirt and comes out into the world. Nathan is leaning against the wall, Jamie in his arms, while Hales, Maddie and Brooke are sitting around the living room, drinking coffee.

"Hey guys! That's a surprise. Maddie, you are early, and Brooke, what are you doing here?"

Maddie gives him a mischievous smile. "The photoshoot ended early, and Brooke decided she missed the Scott boys, so she came for a visit. She is staying with me."

"Grab a coffee, Luke. And they brought donuts."

"Hey! Copfood!"

They all laugh at the lame old joke. "So, Brooke and Maddie. How was the shoot?"

Brooke answers. "Take a good look at what she is wearing."

It's a light green dress with details in white, thin straps, a little cleavage showing, tight across the chest and flaring at the hips. It's deep cut in the back, with a couple of strings across, ending right above the knees.

"I see. Cute and sexy."

"That's the word, Broody. I'm brilliant. The photographer wanted her to do a spot for Victoria's Secret fitness line."

I turn to Maddie. "Did you agree?"

"No. I don't want the exposure. Listen, guys. I'm going home, changing and going for a run. I called dispatch and told them I'm it for now. Lucas, you can take it easy, and take anything after two in the morning, ok?"

"That's fine."

"Brooke, I'll see you at home. Bye."

"Bye, sweetie. And thank you."

"You're welcome."

Brooke turns to me. "Broody, come. Show me around town. Tutorfamily, We'll be back before dinner."

Haley and Nathan exchange glances. "All right, Tigger. See you two later."

Brooke grabs my hand and drags me out of the house.

I stop outside the house and look at her. I have no idea what's in her mind, but she looks happy. "What, Brooke?"

"Nothing much, Broody. I asked you to show me the sights. Is there anything to see in this town?"

"Not much to see, but there are some places I like."

"What's at the top of the list?"

"That park bench across the street. I sit there when I need to think."

"Anyplace else?"

We walk to the car. "All right, let's have a tour."

The first place we stop is the basketball court. "This is nice, Broody. It's a lot bigger than Tree Hill's court."

I pick up a ball and shoot a three-pointer. Perfect shot, no rim."This is a big part of my life here."

I pick up the ball and give it to her. She goes to the free-throw line and takes a shot. Perfect form, knees bent, arms just right. The ball rolls around the rim and swooshes in. She gives a big smile and pumps a fist in the air. "You haven't forgotten."

"No." She sighs. "I've been in New York since July. I've been doing an internship at Victoria's Secret, designing mainly for their Pink line. There's about a dozen of my designs in their Fall catalog, and there will probably be even more in their Spring line up. But I'm just about ready to quit. They are getting a lot more from me than I'm getting from them."

"What about college?"

"I have a scholarship for Parson's School of Design. I was supposed to start this Fall, but I deferred for a semester. I'm still not sure about that."

"I'm sure you can get something useful from college."

"I don't think I have to go to school to learn about fashion design, Broody. I'm already better at it than almost anyone in the field. Right now, I'd really like to know more about how to run a business."

"What's happening to Clothes over Bros?"

"That's what I spend most of my time on. Before I got to New York, I got a loan from my mother. I used the money to set up the production, logistics and distribution for clothes sold directly through the site. We sold three hundred thousand dollars last month.. Every month, I have to scramble to expand production and logistics to meet the demand of the month after that. I have no idea where I'm headed with this, but it looks like the big, big time."

"Wow. You must work like crazy."

"It's all I do. I'm putting in twelve to fifteen hour days, six days a week. What about you, Broody? How are you spending your days?"

"College, family, basketball and police work. It's pretty crazy too."

"Tell me about it."

"Let's continue our tour."

Right outside the city there is a hill with a nice overlook of the town and the surrounding valley. You reach it through a hidden power company causeway, which is almost too rough for my car. "So, this is East Clarksson."

"It's pretty."

He gets back to her question. "College is pretty cool. It's even more about reading and writing stuff than high school, and you know that comes easy. Some of the Profs are nice, most are boring."

"What are you studying?"

"Literature and Psych."

"Psychology? That's new."

"It's Maddie's influence. She convinced me that a writer needs a deeper understanding of how our minds work. I think she is right."

"What about family?"

"It's all about Jamie. Sharing this time with Nate and Hales,,, it's amazing, Brooke. It kills me not to be a part of Lily's first year, but they need me, much more than mom does."

"How is it working, in practice?"

"Haley and I have the jobs, so Nathan is the housekeeper. Now we are using half-period daycare, which we can afford because my job is paying well. Maddie is always with us as well, even after we split up."

"Do you guys have other friends?"

"The basketball squad, I guess. What about you?"

"I more-or-less live with Rachel. She is a successful model, so she travels a lot. But, when she is in New York, she stays with me. Bitchtoria is often around as well. There isn't anyone else."

I smile. "All work and no play makes Brooke..."

"A very rich, somewhat frustrated girl."

"It is what you dreamed, isn't it?"

She looks into my eyes, a complex dance of emotions behind them. "In part."

I pause for a few seconds, and then continue. "Sometimes I feel I'm intruding. It's their moment, you know, their first year with their baby. But, most of the time, I know that I'm helping them."

"They do need you, right now. You're helping them keep their dreams alive. Nate's dream anyways."

"Her dream is to keep her family together, Brooke. Make no mistake, I love Nathan and I'm crazy about Jamie. But I came here for her. For myself, also, but mostly for her."

"I think I care about that family about as much as you do. I'm glad they have you."

"Thank you."

"For what?"

"For caring."

We lie down on the hood of the Mustang, and look at the clouds. "Broody, I'm starving."

"Let's go eat then."

I take Brooke to a BBQ shack at the edge of town. The owner, Charlie, is a Desert Storm vet in his forties, a large black man with a huge laugh. He's got two children, Lucy, a gorgeous, outspoken sixteen-year-old girl with chocolate skin and green eyes, and Max, a ten-year-old boy. Last month I helped Lucy avoid an embarrassing, and slightly dangerous situation involving an overly enthusiastic boy and too much booze at a high school party. I've been coming back regularly for the ribs and the company ever since.

It's pretty late, so the place is empty. Lucy is taking orders, and Charlie is back at the kitchen. "Lucy."

She gives me a huge smile. "Lucas! Daddy, it's Lucas." Charlie comes to the front, also with a big smile. "Hey, my boy."

"Hi, Charlie, Lucy. This is my friend Brooke. Charlie makes the best barbecue ribs this side of heaven."

"That's one very pretty friend you have there, Lucas boy. Where did you find her?"

"Thank you, Charlie. Lucas and I went to high school together."

"And I'm sure you had a lot of fun, too."

Brooke actually flushes a bit. "Yes we did."

Charlie laughs. "Just have a seat, Lucas, little lady. I'll bring you something in a bit."

We sit down and Lucy comes by with a basket of biscuits, and a pot of sauce. "What do you want to drink?"

"Iced tea, please."

"Same for me."

"Lucas," she whispers. "That girl has a huge crush on you."

I get close to her and tuck a wisp of her hair behind her ear. "I know."

Lucy comes back with the two glasses of ice tea and sets them down. "If you need anything else, just yell. I'll be outside."

"She is gorgeous, Broody. I'd love to make her a dress. Not many girls with that incredible skin tone."

"She is a great girl. Top of her class, sarcastic, funny and she has a huge heart. You know the type. She is used to getting whatever she wants."

"So I'm here to encourage her to move on?"

I smile. "The ribs are really good too."

"There is a message for me too, isn't there?"

"If you wish. As I said, the ribs are good." I look into her eyes. "I'm yours, if you want me, Pretty Girl."

She's been keeping very cool all afternoon, but that gets to her. For a moment, the wall comes down and I can see the struggle between fear and hope in her eyes. She speaks in a low voice. "I'm getting there, Broody. Just bear with me. Be patient."

I smile. That's all I need to hear. "Here you go, police-man. With potato salad and buttered corn, just as you like it. Where is Lucy?"

"She's outside."

He looks at the two of us, and out the window to his daughter. "Thank you, Lucas. You're a good man." He turns to Brooke. "You hold onto him, girl. I was sorry to hear about him and the little blondie, but now I get it."

Brooke looks at him with a soft smile. "I'll try Charlie."

The ribs were truly very good.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Maddie was reading a book in the living room sofa when I got in. She lifts her eyes and gives me that luminous smile of hers. I take it in for a bit. "That's why he calls you beautiful."

"He doesn't, anymore. How was your afternoon?"

I sit beside her and wrap an arm around her shoulders. "You're right. He's different."

"Better?"

I sigh. "For me, he was always pretty hard to resist. Now..."

She giggles. "I know. Much better."

"He said he's mine, if I want him. I told him I was getting there, that he should be patient. I think I lied."

"You're already there."

I look into her eyes. "You feel the same, don't you?"

"I had to hold him with open hands, sweetie. This also means not opening yourself completely. It means holding something back. So, no, it's not the same."

"I think you're lying."

"Maybe a bit. Are you really ready?"

"Yes."

"Then go for it. Kiss him. Fuck him. Give him your heart and your soul. Do it for the two of us."

I look into her blue eyes. She grabs my face between her strong hands and gives me a kiss. It starts romantic, but I feel her tongue in my lips and I open my mouth, deepening it into a fiery, passionate embrace. Slowly I lie on the couch, my hands playing on her back, while she lies on top of me, her small firm body squirming against mine as our tongues battle, her hands in my hair. After a couple of minutes she breaks it up, and stands smiling next to me.

"I've been dying to do that, and maybe a little more, since I first saw you."

I pass my hands through my hair. "I didn't think I would ever enjoy being kissed by a girl, but you just proved me wrong. Wow."

"You're a damn good kisser too. But then, I like girls, and I like you."

I play a bit with her hair."I like you too." In truth, I get why Lucas fell for her. She is pretty special on many levels. "What was it?"

"A little gift. Keep it to yourself, and smile when you see me. Or, if you ever want to set our boy on fire, tell him about it. I'll just treasure the memory."

I get up and head for the door. "Thank you, Maddie. For everything."

"Just be good to him, Brooke Davis."

The lights are still on at the Scotts when I get there. I knock softly, and Haley answers. 

"Hi, Tigger." She looks into my eyes and smiles. "He's in his room."

"Thanks, Tutormom." Nathan and Haley were watching a movie. I go by Nathan and give him a peck in the head. "Have fun, Nate." He just grunts back.

I grab the scrunchie that's holding my hair. It's pink, not black, but it will have to do. I hang it on the outside of Lucas door and let myself in. He is sitting on his desk, typing. As I get in, he lifts his eyes from his computer and smiles. "Hi, Pretty Girl."

"Screw patience. I want you back, boyfriend. Third time is the charm."

He saves his work, closes his computer and stands up, reaching for my hair with one hand. "Then you got me, girlfriend."

He bends down a bit and I go on tiptoes, so our lips meet. It takes one second to get reacquainted, and the old fire is right back. The feel of his hair, the firmness of his lips, his hard body against mine, the feel of his hands and the citrus and sweat smell... my favorite smell in the whole world. We break it after fifteen seconds, a slow romantic kiss that leaves me tingling and awakens a very familiar hunger in his eyes.

He pulls back a little, looking intensely into my eyes. "Maybe we should talk a little, before we proceed."

"I have three rules, boyfriend. It's exclusive, it's forever and it's both of us all the way in. No holding back, and no lies. I'm trusting you with my heart again, and there is a part of me which feels I'm crazy to do it."

He gives me a dazzling smile. "I completely agree with your conditions. For now, we are long distance, and we are both very busy. We need to take a little time every day to talk."

"Sure." I look him in the eyes and bite my lower lip. "Can a girl get a little action around here?"

"Are you sure? We can take this slowly."

I give him a lascivious smile. "I'm sure. I need you right now."

He sits in his chair and checks me out. "It's been over ten months. Can I take a look at the goods first?"

"Sure. Would you put in some music?"

"Sexy or romantic?"

"You choose." We both remember very well how to please each other. I like to show off, and he loves watching me. He picks up his phone, fiddles a bit, and puts it the little speakers. "Begin Again" by Taylor Swift. Sweet and to the point. I undress slowly, doing a romantic dance with myself, in tempo with the pretty song. I'm still in good shape, not quite as toned as he remembers. I'm not doing two hours a day of cheer practice, but I do use my gym membership. I finish the song naked, smiling and playing with myself a bit. His hungry look is all the afrodisiac I ever needed. "So, boy toy. Like what you see?"

"Breathtaking."

"Right answer, boyfriend. It's your turn."

I replay the song, and he makes it slow and sexy too. I can't help my gasp of surprise when he takes off his shirt. Broader shoulders, thicker arms, deeper abs. Without the pants, it's the same with his thighs, buttocks and calves, all strongly defined. Little Lucas still looks the same, proudly standing to attention while I play with myself a little more intently. "Twenty pounds of extra muscle this past year, Pretty Girl. Natural maturing, martial arts training plus dating a fitness fanatic."

"How much can you bench press now?"

"One hundred and eighty."

"I'm a hundred and twenty. A little lighter than a year ago. You can lift me up and do me while standing."

He gives me a broad smile. "I sure can. Is that what you want?"

"No. Some other time." I hold my ankles and open up as wide as I can, pointing my toes. Still pretty flexible. "Just get down here and kiss little Brooke for me. Put that golden tongue of yours to proper use."

He waits about ten seconds, just taking in the view, caressing himself as he does it. I wiggle a bit. "Feeling lonely here, Broody."

"I'm coming, princess. Or better yet, you're coming." And I sure do.

The call comes around four in the morning. "Patrol car seven for Mr. Scott."

Lucas gets up and grabs the radio. "Scott here. What's up George?"

"DUI stop at State Route seventeen, driving erratically. Boy driver, mid twenties, girl passenger, fake ID, likely in her teens. Not drunk, but a little high. Apparent coke residue on the nostrils and fingers."

"Locals?"

"Atlanta residents, passing by."

"What else"

"Nine mil in the glove compartment, no serial number. Subjects get real squirrely when asked for provenance."

"Arrest them on the DUI, call the doc and get a urine sample. Hold them on separate cells and do a thorough search on the car and in their persons. If they lawyer up, just hold them without talking. I'll be at the station in half an hour."

"I'm sorry, girlfriend, I have to go." He thinks a bit. "Do you want to ride along? It's safe, and this is a big part of my life these days."

"Yes, I'll go. Give me a few minutes."

He takes a quick shower, brushes his teeth, shaves, picks up slacks, a button down shirt, a tie and grabs a big lockbox with a keypad from his closet. He punches in the code and grabs a hip holster with a big pistol, a leather wallet with his credentials and deputy star and a small ankle holster with a pistol in his ankle. He is ready in twenty minutes, which is the time it takes me to brush my teeth, put some jeans, a nice shirt and low wedges. As we leave, I grab my pink scrunchie from the door handle, and tie my hair on a messy ponytail.

We drive to the station on the big police SUV. He heads right in, but I stay back. "I'll join you in a few minutes Broody. Go right ahead." He gives me a peck in the lips and leaves. I stay back because I need to process last night a bit. Maddie is right. This Lucas is a different man. He is frighteningly self-assured, powerful, smart and self-contained. He can make my body sing and he can make me feel like a giddy little girl with just a look. This new Lucas pushes back, in every way.

Challenges me in a way that my old boyfriend never did. I understand he really is choosing me. On my side, I have no doubt. He is definitely the one I want. The only one I ever wanted.

I walk into the station, and there is a middle aged man, in uniform, with a large beer gut, sitting behind a counter, with some paperback in his hand. He smiles at me. "How can I help you, Miss..."

"Davis. Brooke Davis. I'm with Mr. Scott."

His smile widens. "Ah, I see. I'm George Fraser. And you're the reason he broke up with Miss Ward."

"I don't know. Maybe. Is that a problem?"

"We can't settle a little office bet without a definitive yes or no."

I think about it. "On balance... "yes" has it."

"Very well. I think the fellows will take your word for it."

"Did you win?"

"No. I bet they were getting back together. You are quite a looker, but you should be careful. Those two were a really precious item."

"Actually, I know that."

He gives me a long look. "And you still game to get in between them?"

I shrug. "I have a long history with Lucas Scott." What is the difference between our triangle and the triangle of death in high school? In high school I believed Peyton had Lucas heart, despite his insistent claim to the contrary. It turned out he was right all along. Now, we all know Maddie still has a piece of his heart. By rights, I should be terrified, but I'm not. Bottom line, I trust Maddie and new Lucas. I believe they will kill themselves before they hurt me. I'm pretty sure that, if anyone screws this up, it will be me, not them.

"Well, go right ahead, Miss Davis. Mr Scott is just sweating a couple of fools in there."

I hear muffled voices coming from a door, and I knock. Lucas opens the door, gives me a brief smile and opens the door. A young woman, pretty, with straight dirty blonde hair, tats, a t-shirt, slutty shorts and combat boots is handcuffed to a metal table, her face a mix of fear and defiance.

"Miss Davis, thank you for coming so promptly."

I give the girl a contemptuous look. "And you got me out of bad for... this?"

The girl jumps in in her seat, rattling her handcuffs.

"I have her with possession of a controlled substance, a false ID and felonious possession of a firearm."

"Book her for the fake ID, and send her up to county. The homegirls in general population are going to love her."

"Hey, you can't do that. I'm underage."

Lucas turns to her and asks sweetly. "Can you substantiate that?"

"I'm a senior at Ethan Hawthorn High, in Decatur, Georgia. My name is Ellen Page. The yearbook is online."

I pick my phone and fiddle with it a bit. There's no need to check it. I know she is telling the truth.

"Do you live with your parents?"

"I live with my brother, Joshua Page."

"Just a second. Can I have a word, Miss Davis?" We walk outside and he closes the door. He briefly pushes me against the door, giving me a deep, hot, unfortunately brief kiss. "Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"Just a second. This was progress." He gets to the computer and inputs the name "Joshua Page" and the city of Decatur. It seems that he is a violent petty criminal, with convictions for armed robbery, drug dealing and assault. He also gets a list of known associates, and the alias "Mutt Thompson" appears. The car they were driving is registered to one "Matthew Edwards Thompson". Lucas gets up and goes to another room. "Just stay here, Pretty Girl. This one I'd better do myself." Fifteen minutes later he emerges with a grin.

"I got it. The driver is called Jack Muldoway. He's twenty-five, no serious record. Apparently sweet Ellen's brother is a seriously bad dude, who runs a crew in Atlanta, doing mostly drug-related stuff, with some robberies on the side. Jack is the new guy, he has been driving for the crew this past six months. Apparently Jack and little Ellen have been doing it on the down low for a couple of months now, and if Joshua finds out, Jack runs the risk of losing the family jewels. Jack borrowed one of the crew's cars, supposedly to go visit some family down in Alabama. Little Ellen has, again supposedly, been staying with friends. They were being squirrely because they will be in hot water if big brother finds out they were together. That's why they haven't lawyered up yet. Trouble is, Jack knows we can probably connect the gun to some crime down in Georgia, and, if he doesn't come clean, he gets at least an accomplice charge. So, he turned witness. All we have to do is turn him in to Decatur PD, and we are done.

"Why are you so pleased?"

"It's a stinking mess, but it is not ours to clean up."

"This means back to sleep?" He squints at me, and I can feel my pulse accelerating.

"George can take Jack's statement. I can't really interrogate a minor without a legal guardian present, so I'll just let Ellen stew her cute little behind in a holding cell for now. I gotta get back here in three hours or so, report to the Sheriff and to Maddie and set things in motion with Georgia."

"She's got a cute little behind?"

"She sure does. Nowhere near as cute as yours, though."

"You're a smart fellow."

"Well, thank you, honey. Got some time to kill. What do you say we head back to our bed? We might even sleep a little."

I look at him, and pass the tip of my tongue slowly across my lips, an idea slowly forming in my slutty little brain. "Do you have handcuffs?"

We come out of the bedroom around seven, having slept for an additional hour. Haley is cooking breakfast, while Nathan is feeding Jamie. "Good morning, tutorfamily!"

"Good morning, Tigger, bil." Her eyes stop for a second at the marks around my wrists. "Did you confess?"

Lucas comes from behind, puts a hand in my shoulder and gives me a soft kiss in the neck, which sends shivers right down to my toes. "She told me everything."

Nathan and Haley exchange a little glance. Lucas doesn't blink. "Yes guys, you can borrow the handcuffs."

Haley giggles, and Nathan looks smug. I quite simply adore those two.

We are having our second cup of coffee when Maddie walks in. "Good morning Davis, Scotts"

Her eyes meet Lucas and they exchange a small grin. She moves her lips silently, and Lucas nods. She then looks at me, and noticing the handcuff marks, opens one of her luminous smiles. She comes next to me and runs a finger down my arm. "Did you have fun yesterday, sweetie?"

I frown at her. "It's not nice to brag about it with an ex."

"Never mind. The question was rhetorical anyways. I hear you wrapped up a neat little dirt package overnight."

"That's right. Brooke helped." Maddie lifts an eyebrow. "She can think on her feet and she gives away nothing she doesn't want to."

Nice to be appreciated. "I run a very successful business in a competitive industry. These are tools of the trade."

Maddie looks at me. "Do you play poker?"

Nathan replies. "Brooke is the best poker player I've ever seen. By junior year, everybody got tired of losing their allowances to her and we wouldn't let her sit on a game."

I make my innocent face. "I would get lucky sometimes."

Lucas adds. "I knew that." I give him a slap in the arm. "Ouch! Pretty Girl! I've never played poker with Brooke, but I'm not surprised. Haley taught me how to play. She is damn good too."

Tutormom is pretty amused. "So, what about a game? Penny ante, one dollar limit, Vegas rules"

Nathan looks around at the quiet excitement around the room. "Why do I get the feeling I was suddenly dropped in a tank full of sharks?"

Haley places her hands on her husband's shoulders. "Don't worry, honey. We'll let you keep your pants."

"You guys should play with Dan. I'd love to see him get skinned alive by four teenagers."

"What about next time I come around? I have some catching up to do with my stud."

"It's a date. Your stud has some work to do at the station. I promise to return him after lunch."

"Go ahead, Maddie. I'll be there in half an hour."

"All right. Bye Scotts, bye, Davis."

Lucas goes to the bathroom, shower and shave, and Nathan places Jamie in a bjorn and goes for a run.

"What was that, Tigger? She is all proper with Lucas, no sign of jealousy, and she flirts with you?"

I smile. "She wasn't just flirting with me. She was mostly flirting with him."

Haley stops for a second and frowns. "Wow. You're probably right. This is complicated, Tigger. Are you ok with this?"

"For the most part, I'm more than ok. I'm over the moon. As for the remainder, it's brand new. Somehow, Lucas, Maddie and I need to find a way to live with ourselves. For now, it's all good."

"Until it isn't. The flirting can't be right."

I laugh softly. "I like the flirting."

"You do?"

"I'm a little attracted to her. It's weird, cause she's the only girl I ever felt like that about. I really like her, and she is extremely cute and somehow, she feels like a miniature boy. It's nothing like what I feel for Lucas, who can make my blood boil with a stare, but it's there."

"Still. What about Lucas? Don't you feel guilty?"

"Think about it, sweetie. Why is it wrong to flirt with somebody else in front of your boy?"

"Because it hurts him? Because it gives the wrong person ideas?"

"Right. Do you think it hurts Lucas to see Maddie and I flirting?"

"No." She thinks about it a bit. "It turns him on, doesn't it?"

"You're damn right it does. Does it bother you?"

"Not really. It worries me, that's all."

"All right. Do you think it might give Maddie the wrong ideas?"

"No. She knows exactly where your heart is."

"And, as I said, I enjoy it. So, for now, it seems like harmless fun. And I love fun."

"Somehow, it still looks like you guys are playing with fire. How do you know Maddie is not getting hurt?"

"Oh, she is hurt all right. Letting go of Lucas is killing her. I've been there, I know the feeling. I think flirting with me is just part of her coping."

Lucas comes out of the bathroom and goes into his bedroom, and I follow him. He smiles at me.

"Enjoying the view?"

"Of course. Life's small pleasures."

"Did I mention today that I love you?"

"Actually, it's the first time you say it since Whitey's party. Just for the record, I'm madly in love with you, Broody." He gives me a sweet kiss in the lips.

"When are you leaving?"

"Sunday afternoon. I wish I could just stay."

"I'll miss you, but I'm going to really enjoy missing you while knowing that you're mine again."

I laugh. "I know what you mean." I arrange his tie and give him a peck in the lips. "I guess I forgot how much of a dork you are."

He shrugs. "Your dork?"

I giggle. "My dork."

As he is leaving the room, he turns around. "Do you want to spend the next couple of nights at a fancy hotel in Charlotte? Room service, Jacuzzi, swimming pool..."

"Sure. Do you want me to find a place and make a reservation?"

"No, thanks. I'll handle that. Would you mind packing a bag for me? "

"That's fine. I was planning to go through your closet anyways. Do you still have your Peyton box?"

He laughs. "It's at home in Tree Hill. I have a Brooke box and a Maddie box in my closet."

I frown at him. "You don't mind me going through your stuff?"

He gives a soft laugh. "Not really. See you soon."

"Bye, boyfriend."

Haley is doing laundry and vacuuming, and Nathan goes for a shower and a shave, so I get to play with my godson for a bit. I put him on a bouncer, which he really likes, and I keep giving him toys and talking to him. He is a great listener.

"So, little Scott, I'm back with your uncle. I know, no need to be jealous, you're still my number one boy. What's that? Yes, I'm going to be around more. I have to come and catch some action. Maybe we can find a cute baby girl and double date? With your looks and the Scott charm, who can resist? Don't worry, I'll make you a nice outfit for our double date. No, you're too young to make out. Tutormom would kill me. Maybe a little kiss..."

"Tigger! Would you stop corrupting my son?"

"Hey, Tutormom. You knew what you were getting when you asked me to be his godmother. You can't complain now. " I turn to Jamie. "You see? Your mom is so silly!"

"Maybe I should have asked Peyton, or Taylor."

"If you wanted him to learn to be a backstabbing traitor or a manwhore, sure. Me, I just want to him to have some fun."

"That's what I'm afraid."

I show Tutormom my tongue. "I'm just going to ask Rachel to be the godmother of your cousins. You'll see." Did I just say that? Cousins? In get up and run back to Lucas' room. Where did this sudden hunger for his babies come from? I stand in front of a mirror and lift my shirt. I stare at my flat stomach and I imagine a big bulge growing there. I can feel tears coming down my cheeks. Haley comes into the bedroom after me.

"Are you ok?"

"Oh, I'm peachy. I'm eighteen years old, a sexy up-and-coming fashion designer and entrepreneur and suddenly I realize that the one thing I most want out of life is a half-dozen of Lucas Scott's children."

Haley giggles. "What, you think this is funny?"

"No, sweetie. It's just that I've been there. After the concert tour, and that miserable time before he took me back, I was feeling exactly like that. It's just biology. Once we find the boy we want, we are programmed to really want their babies. Getting him back after losing him, it was almost a physical hunger."

"I can't have a baby now."

"I know. You just got back with him and you're playing with his baby nephew, which happens to look unreasonably like him. It had to hit you below the belt."

"We had a pregnancy scare."

"You did? How come I don't know of that."

"Only Lucas, Karen and I knew. Oh, and jackass Dan knew too. It was after we broke up junior year. Suddenly I had no boyfriend, no best friend and a missed period turned into a positive pregnancy test. What a horrible moment. I was sixteen, completely heartbroken, and pregnant. I swallowed my anger and my pride and I told Lucas."

"What happened?"

"He was just as terrified as I was. We were sixteen. We went to the doctor, and had a test. I was still really angry, so we kept fighting, and eventually he asked how I knew it was really his. That made me beyond pissed, so when the doctor called and told me it was a false alarm, I lied to him, I told him it was confirmed."

"Damn!"

"A day later he came to me and gave me this incredibly sweet speech that I was not alone, and that he would support me in whatever I wanted to do, and, if I wanted to raise the baby he would be there with me all the way."

"Now, that's the Lucas I raised."

"Even then, with all the relief that I wouldn't be a seventeen-year-old mom, There was a part of me that was disappointed I wasn't pregnant. When I told him that I lied, that he was off the hook, I could see that behind his anger and relief, he was a little disappointed too."

"So, this hunger for his babies is not new."

"No. I never really wanted to be a mother until Lucas. And he is the only guy whose babies I ever saw myself having."

Haley smiles. "I can't say the same."

"Whose babies did you want? Chris Keller's?"

"No, silly. Lucas' babies, of course."

"What?"

"I always knew I wanted babies. When I was twelve or thirteen, I used to daydream I would have them with Lucas. Even then I knew he would be a great father. I really wanted to have a crush on him, but it never happened. Besides, he wouldn't shut up about Peyton."

"I envy you a bit all those years with him."

"You and Nathan go back even farther. And I know how close you two are, even if you don't show it."

"That's true. I pulled away when he started dating Peyton. I couldn't really stand the way they used to hurt one another."

"Bottom line, Tigger, let this new thing with Lucas find its groove. The baby thing will always be there, and you guys will get to it in time."

"You're right. Thanks Tutormom. This little talk helped."

"You're welcome."

Lucas came back at two. He brought my suitcase, that I had left at Maddie's trunk the day before, and transfered it to the Mustang's trunk. We add the suitcase I packed for him, plus a suit bag, in case we wanted to dress up a little. I despaired a bit with the state of his closet. My boy is in serious need of a new wardrobe, at least if he is going to be seen in public with me. I'll take him shopping when he comes to New York. Lucas leaves his big gun in the gun safe, but keeps the little gun strapped to his ankle. When we are about to get in the car, he does something that really surprises me. He offers me the Mustang's keys. I hesitate. I asked, even begged, and he never let me drive it before.

"Go ahead, Pretty Girl. You know you wanna." I grab the keys.

"What's gotten into you?"

He smiles. "I enjoy looking at you. I can't do that and drive at the same time."

The car is very responsive. The wide tires feel like they are hugging the road, and we seem to leap at the slightest touch of the accelerator. "What a sweet ride, boyfriend."

"We're going to the Ritz-Carlton. Just take a left here and a right at the next light."

When we reach the open road, I let it loose a bit, and I whoop with the response.

He puts on some Springsteen, which is not my favorite, but certainly suits the ride and the road.

He carries me into our room, which turns out to be a suite, with a posh living room, a veranda with a nice view of the city and a king size bed. As promised, there's a large Jacuzzi in the bathroom. A bellhop brings up our luggage, and Lucas tips him.

Lucas goes into the bedroom, takes off his shoes, and the ankle holster with the little pistol, and lies down in the bed. I take off my shoes and lie down next to him. We lie on our sides, face to face, about five inches apart, nosetip to nosetip.

He breaks the silence. "This feels like a dream, Pretty Girl."

I pick up one of his hands and begin to play with his fingers. Long, strong and oh, so familiar. "I am shy with you. I'm not shy to fuck you, that's easy, as we know, or to make out. But just talking, or playing, I'm shy. I used to talk to you about everything. About my day, my hair, the tv shows, my favorite kind of chocolate or actor or skin care products. You would talk about books or basketball, our teachers or a movie we watched, or the places we wanted to visit. I could just be myself with you. Now I think I forgot how to do that..."

"It looks you're remembering."

I start crying. "I've been so lonely, Luke! Heartbroken, sad and lonely. I'm not your Cheery anymore. I don't even know if I can be." He embraces me, running his fingers through my hair as I snuggle up against his chest. I keep holding his other hand with both of mine."

"I'm so sorry, Pretty Girl. So sorry. I should have been around more."

"You were the last person I wanted around. I've been turning into my mother, Luke. My heart slowly becoming a stone. I love you, more than anything. It upsets me how much I need you. I'm Brooke Davis, Fiercely independent. Brilliant, beautiful and brave. Your own words. I've been trying very hard to live up to them, Luke. I want to be here, to love you, but I don't really want to need you, or anyone."

"You made a good life for yourself."

"No. You made a good life for yourself. You kept your family near, and you even found a new girl to love. I just worked my butt off and became rich."

"Don't knock it off, Brooke. Working hard to make your dreams come true is a great thing. Becoming rich through your own effort and talent is pretty nice too. You should be very proud."

He still knows how to say the right thing. "I am proud. But I would gladly drop everything, just to be with you. Just to feel like this again. It's fucking pathetic."

"There is nothing pathetic about you. So, you need your family, big deal. You know that Nathan, Haley and Jamie, mom and Lily are as much your family as they are mine."

I turn sarcastic. "Right, I get on with Lucas, and I get my whole family back. It's a nice bonus."

"I know you talk to mom and Haley."

I drop my eyes. "Yeah, I do. They are both great. I have Rachel in my life too, in and out, because that's the life of a top model, but she is there. But..."

I let the sentence trail off and look into his eyes. "But?"

"Luke, you are a great boyfriend and a great lover."

"Thanks..."

I put a finger in on his lips. "Shh. There's a scared, lonely little girl inside of me, Luke. And you are the only real home she's ever known. That's why I need you so much. It freaks me out, because I know it's not the same for you. I am so afraid that you'll walk away again, that half of me just wants to push you away again."

"I'm not going to walk away, ever. And you're flat wrong about one thing."

"What?"

"You think it's not the same for me. That's not really true. You're home for me too. The only home I've ever wanted."

For a few minutes, we just lie there, face to face, his hand still in mine.

"Pretty girl?"

"Boyfriend?"

"I want to make love with you."

I giggle. In our playbook, there are three kinds of sex, there is fun sex, that often involves toys or role playing, there is passionate, sex, driven mostly by want or lust and there is romantic sex, what Lucas just called "making love". For us, the last kind is the rarest. But it is my favorite. "I'd like that. Would you undress me?" We can also combine all three, sometimes.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

He is waiting for me outside, and gives me a smile when our eyes meet, which I respond with a smile of my own.. "Good morning."

"Good morning, Lucas." We start walking, slowly, towards the college. We both have Psych at eight. So, you and Brooke are back together."

"That's right. And we all know we have you to thank for it."

"Well, she did require a little backbone transplant. I'm very pleased with this, Luke."

He catches the little snag in my voice. "I'm sorry."

I raise my voice a little. "Don't be sorry! I regret nothing. I don't regret being with you, falling for you and I don't regret that we ended it when we did either. I can't help it missing being your girlfriend, but I can handle it."

"I miss being your boyfriend too. But I have Brooke back, and I'm very, very happy. I hate hurting you, though."

"Lucas, with you, I experienced falling in love. I was convinced I would never experience that. I don't really sweat the heartbreak."

"I do sweat it, and so does Brooke."

We walk for a couple of minutes without speaking. Finally I break the silence.

"We have to find a way to be friends. The three of us. I really need you two in my life."

"Of course we will be friends. But you know it will always be a bit more than that."

I turn around and look into his eyes. "Right. The question is, how?"

"We're going to have to come up with that as we go along. We need to take care of each others hearts. Just warn me if I'm being an ass. I'm the stupid one of the trio."

I laugh. "You can leave that to me"

We continue walking to class. "I'm glad we ended it when we did. It would only get harder if we waited longer."

"I know that. But now, you really need to try to move on, "

"All right, buster. I'm going out tonight. I'm going to find a good looking dude or dudette, and I'm going to get seriously laid."

He looks a little sad, and relieved. "That's fine, Maddie. Have fun. I'll handle the night calls."

Nathan and I came home after practice, to find Haley cooking dinner, and Maddie playing with Jamie. "Hey girls! Wow. Smells great."

"Oh, hi you two. Dinner will be ready in forty minutes. Why don't you shower, while Maddie and I finish it and set the table. There's pecan pie and ice cream for desert, courtesy of your partner."

"Thanks, supergirl. I love pecan pie."

"I know you do, stud. Just go. You guys are stinking up the place."

A few minutes later we come back, fairly presentable. "So, what's for dinner?"

"Pot roast, buttered spaghetti and steamed zucchini. And a salad."

"Good going, Hales. What's the occasion?"

"No occasion. Had a little time in my hands, and Maddie was available to play with Jamie... By the way, I keep forgetting to ask. What are you guys doing for Thanksgiving?"

"I'm going to California, spend it with Dad and his fiancee."

"I was planning on going to New York, spend it with Brooke. Mom and Lily are not going to be around this year."

"Would you like to invite Brooke to spend it here with us? Deb might come from Tree Hill, and maybe Quinn and David might come too."

"I'll ask."

"You can have my place, Lucas. Just promise not to wash the sheets. I want a little of that Brooke and Lucas love smell."

Haley makes a disgusted face. "Maddie! And I let you play with my son."

"You chose Lucas and Brooke as godparents, girl. Don't complain.

I just laugh quietly. The request doesn't surprise me one bit. I know my Tinkerbell.

Nathan just balances his head, slightly amused. "You're a piece of work, Supergirl."

We are sitting down to watch a movie when the call comes. Maddie catches it. "No shit. Damn. We'll be there, ten minutes. Luke, let's go. Can I borrow your ankle piece?" She had left her guns at home. We grab the pistols and run out.

"Where?"

"615 Prospect. Hostage situation." I turn on the lights and siren and step on it. Maddie speaks louder. "Man holding ex-wife and two kids at gunpoint. Three cars at the scene. Sheriff is out of town, contacted, ETA three hours. "

"I'll do the negotiation. You try to sneak close. There's a couple of vests in the back, one of them extra-small."

"Be careful Lucas. These are nasty."

"You too."

We get to the scene and there are already three patrol cars parked in front of the house. There are a dozen neighbors standing about. I address those first. "It would be helpful if you cleared this area and returned to your homes. Please, let us do our jobs." I turn to two of the deputies. Clear a fifty yard perimeter. Park one car up the street and one car down. Ask for additional backup, three more cars."

This is a street with small houses, all identical. Two stories, small front yard, separated by a driveway. There are two windows and a door facing the front of the house, both windows shuttered. The upper floor windows appear unshuttered.

Maddie has already put of her vest, and takes a communication device and two deputies out to the back of the house. I approach the senior deputy on the scene. "Steve."

"Lucas."

"Sitrep?"

"The neighbors called in a disturbance twenty minutes ago. We've been at the scene fifteen minutes. The adult male has just demanded we back off. This family is the O'Sheas, Micheal and Alice. Micheal was unemployed, current occupation unknown, Lucy works at Walmart. Two kids, boy age nine and girl age seven."

"Anyone at the two neighboring houses?"

"Right side is occupied. Left seems empty."

"Get the people on the right house out of the perimeter, and break into the left. I want eyes from high on both sides."

I get Maddie's voice on the radio. "M here. There's an open window on the second floor, right side and a downspout I can probably climb."

"All right. Wait for my signal."

"Ten in place."

"Eyes on M?"

"Affirmative."

"Twelve in place."

"Any movement on the second floor?"

"Ten Negative."

"Twelve Negative."

"M is cleared to proceed when I engage the perp with the megaphone."

"M Ten four"

I grab a megaphone and walk to the front of the house. "Mr O'Shea. Mr. O'Shea. This is Deputy Sheriff Scott. The house is surrounded. Come out with your hands up."

The shouts come from the front of the house. "I'm not leaving! Just go away."

He is slurrying. Probably drunk. That's the bane of small town police. Too much booze and too many firearms.

"Ten. M is in."

"M. Going down the stairs. Going silent."

I have to keep distracting our perp. "Mr O'Shea. Nobody is hurt. So far you're looking at very little time. Cooperate now and we will put in a good word with the DA."

I hear a female voice. "Please, Michael. Stop this! The children are scared."

"You slut. These are not my children."

"No!"

I hear Maddie's voice. "Stop!"

I drop the megaphone and run, pistol in hand. There is a loud discharge, screaming and two pops. I break through the front door. The woman and two children are huddled in a corner of the living room, crying. The man is lying in the middle of the room, two rounds in the chest and a puddle of blood growing under him. Maddie is sitting in the floor, blood on her right thigh.

I kick the shotgun towards Maddie and give a quick pat on the man. I check his pulse on the neck. Faint, but still there.

"Two ambulances to the scene, stat. Deputy down."

I turn to Maddie. There's a little pain in her eyes, but it's mostly relief. "It's just a scratch, Luke. A couple of pellets on the outer thigh." Her eyes cloud with tears. "I had to do it. He was going to shoot at the kids."

They remove the pellets from her thigh at the emergency room, give her a couple of stitches, some antibiotics and discharge her. Next, the Sheriff comes along and informs Maddie that she is in on leave until a report on her shooting is issued by the DA. He also says that, with the testimony from the wife, plus our verbal reports, this should be done briefly, and that he would add a commendation in our files for excellent police work. "Honestly kids, I can't stop congratulating myself for hiring you."

Maddie is still looking shellshocked. Taking a moment when Maddie is reporting to the Sheriff, I call Brooke. "Hi, Boyfriend"

"Brooke."

She can hear the catch in my voice. "What happened?"

"There was an incident today. Drunken ex-husband with a shotgun. Wife and two kids as hostages. Maddie got hurt, not serious but it could have been. She shot the guy, two in the chest. He is in surgery, critical condition. She's pretty shaken. I'm taking her home and staying with her. I thought you should know."

"I'm heading there."

"You don't have to come."

"I'm going. I'll be there as soon as I can."

I'm relieved. I do need her strength right now. "We'll be at her home. Key is under the mat at the front door." I also call Nathan and Haley, to tell them what happened.

We head home. We talk a bit, but, in the end, we sit on her sofa, my arm around her shoulders, and her head on my chest. At one in the morning, the call comes. Mr. O'Shea died during surgery. Maddie starts crying. There is nothing to say. She was in real danger. Also, she knows it was a righteous shooting, but killing someone is hard anyways. Eventually I carry her to the bedroom and set her down, lying down and wrapping her in my arms.

It's four in the morning when the bedroom door opens. Both Maddie and I awaken and look at Brooke. She looks into my eyes and I shake my head. Brooke takes off her coat and her shoes, and gets in bed with us.

I whisper. "Thank you Pretty Girl." .

We can both feel Maddie shaking, as she silently cries herself back to sleep.

I wake up a few hours later, still holding Maddie, with Brooke lying across the bed. I get up carefully, and call Brooke to the living room. I finally greet Brooke with a slow kiss on the lips.

"Thank you so much for coming, Pretty Girl."

"I'm glad to be here, for her and for you. Damn, this is so harsh."

"Maddie is very tough. I'm glad she felt safe enough with us to break down last night. She really needed it."

"What now, Luke?"

"There is morning practice today, and I'd like to show up, at least. We have a big game tomorrow, which, if we win, we are guaranteed at the playoffs. Maddie is off duty for a few days. Right now I'm going to call her father and tell him what happened last night. Do you mind sticking around, maybe going to Haley when Maddie wakes up? I'll be back around lunchtime, and maybe we can go for a walk, just the two of us."

"This is fine. Can I make breakfast?"

"Sure."

We kiss again. "I love you, Brooke Davis."

"And I love you, Lucas Scott."

"Hello, Joe?"

"Lucas! How are you, boy? Anything up with Maddie?" He sounds chipper, which means he hasn't heard.

"Well, she is fine, but something did happen. We had a difficult call last night, drunken ex-husband holding his ex and children hostage with a shotgun. The guy was about to shoot the kids and Maddie intervened. She caught a couple of pellets in her leg. Just a scratch. She double tapped the fool. He died on the table."

"Damn. How's she doing?"

"She's sleeping now. But she was pretty broken up last night. There is no doubt it was a righteous shooting."

"She needs help. I'm sure you're a great comfort to her. I know you're not together anymore, but you are her partner and her best friend. But she needs someone who's been there. I assume she is on leave, pending investigation."

"Yes."

"Can you put her on a plane to Santa Barbara? She can stay with me until after Thanksgiving. I promise I will take good care of her. I've been there, Lucas. It's not easy."

"I'll try to make arrangements and let you know."

"Tell her to call me, if she can. Otherwise, just push her to come here. If she balks, I'll go there instead."

"All right, Joe. Thank you."

"What about you? Are you ok?"

"No I'm not. A slight shift to the shotgun, and it could have caught her femoral artery. She could have easily bled in my arms last night. I'm not sure how to live with that."

"It's a dangerous job, Lucas. From what you're saying, she gambled a slight risk to her life against the likely death of a child, and it payed off. That's a huge win by any standards. She grew up around this job, so she knows the score in and out. You still have to learn, if you're going to stick with it. Go out tonight, take a friend, have a drink or three, and celebrate this win."

"All right, Joe. Thanks."

"You're welcome, Lucas. You have the potential to be a great cop. Be well, buddy."

"Scrambled eggs, toast, orange juice and coffee. That's the extent of my cooking."

"It's wonderful, girlfriend."

"So?"

"He asked me to ship her to Santa Barbara. She needs to be with someone who's been where she is. That sounds about right. He also told me to go out tonight and have a drink or three. You game?"

"Of course. Play some pool?"

"Actually, I'd love to. I love getting beat up by a pretty girl in pool."

"Game on, boyfriend. You were right. You are the guy for me after all."

We were on washing dishes when Maddie emerged from the bedroom. "Hey guys." She goes to Brooke, gives her a big hug. "Thank you."

"No thanks needed. That's what friends are for, love."

Next she stands next to me and runs her arm through my waist. I put an arm on her shoulders and hold her there, on a half hug. She looks at Brooke. "I hope you don't mind."

"I don't mind. It's my safe place too. Breakfast?"

"Sure. Thank you, Lucas. You're the best."

"I called your dad. Told him what happened. He wants you in Santa Barbara, with him and his buddies. I get it that you should be with people that love you, and that have been where you are."

Brooke sets a plate and a steaming mug of coffee in front of her. "Honestly, I'm sure I'd sleep better between the two of you. But I'm going anyways. When a cop kills for the first time in the line of duty, they have something they call a k-meet. A bunch of other cops that also did it get together at the backroom of a restaurant. I don't know what happens, but Daddy would come home pretty quiet after one of those. They are probably going to hold one of these for me."

Brooke looks at her with soft eyes. "Are you going to be ok, sweetie?"

Maddie smiles. "Yes." She runs a hand along her hair. "It's something that was bound to happen, given my life choices. I know I'll be ok."

"I know you will too. I'm going to practice, and then I'll talk to the Sheriff. I'll meet you guys at Haley's around noon." I give Maddie a kiss in the forehead, and Brooke one in the lips.

I get to practice and run attack drills with the team. Nathan is on fire, and the whole team steps up a notch just to keep up. If they play like this tomorrow, it's going to be a wash. Afterwards, I head to the station.

"Good morning, Sheriff."

"Morning, Lucas. How's Maddie?"

"Improving. It was a rough night. She need leave to go home for a few days. Do you think the inquiry will hold for a few days?"

"She can come back after Thanksgiving. I don't think we need anything from her beyond last night's statement. You will stay in town for the holiday?" I nod. "I'll approve time and a half for you, and we'll split the night calls. By the way, the pistol Maddie used is yours, isn't it? It's registered in your name."

"Yes. It's my back-up piece. We were in a hurry when we took the call yesterday, and Maddie didn't have her guns with her."

He opens a drawer and pulls out the little pistol. "Well, here it is. We're done with it."

"Thank you, sir."

"Take the rest of the day and the night off, Lucas. You're back on rotation tomorrow. How's the team, by the way?"

"They were pretty hot in practice today. If they play like that tomorrow, their opponent will never know what hit them."

"Do you want me to lay fifty on them for you?"

"No thanks, sir. But it's a good bet." It's against sporting rules to bet on your team, something I happen to agree completely.

"That brother of yours is incredible."

"He sure is, sir."

When I get to the house, the three girls are sitting on the floor, laughing, with Jamie on a bouncer between them. "Hey, guys. Can I hear the joke too?"

Brooke answers. "You're gonna have to ask your godson. He's the funny one." Brooke turns to Jamie and blows in his belly. "You're the funny one, aren't you, baby boy?" Jamie laughs and everybody laughs as well. "See? He's pretty good."

"I bought a ticket for this afternoon. I'm going to pack after lunch. Will you drop me at the airport?"

"Of course. I'm off watch until tomorrow morning."

"I'm sorry I'm going to miss the game. Here's the key to the house. You two, enjoy."

"When are you going back to New York, Tigger?"

"If it was up to me, never."

"I think we'd all like that. Isn't that right, Jimmy Jam?"

"Actually, I shifted a few things around. I have some work to do, but I can do it from here. I'm staying until after Thanksgiving." She gives me a lascivious stare. "If my boyfriend will have me."

"I'll have to talk with my other girlfriends, but I think we can make make an accommodation." She gives me a hard slap in the arm. "Ouch! That hurts."

"When do classes end here?"

"Finals end December twentieth. Spring starts January third."

"I have to stay in New York during the break. And I want you as a bed warmer for Christmas, boy toy."

"Glad to be of service, princess."

Maddy turns to me. "I can get Daddy to come down here for Christmas. You can go to New York and spend the break with Brooke."

Haley turns to Maddie. "That's fine, blondie, but I'd like you and your dad to drive down to Tree Hill for the Christmas Eve dinner."

"Really?"

"You're family, silly."

"Hm. Do you think Antwon will be around?"

"Sure. But he is taken, girlie."

"I don't mind, I'll do them both."

Brooke looks thoughtful. "Knowing Skillz and Bevin, they might take you up on that."

"She hot?"

"Yup. Sizzling. And a bit bi, like you."

Maddie gives a smile. "I know what I want for Christmas. I'll just need someone to distract Daddy for a bit."

"Deb will be there. She's crazy, but..."

"Perfect. Daddy likes crazy. We'll be there."

After dropping Maddie at the airport, we head to the Mall in Charlotte. Brooke wants to shop for the next few days.

We're at Neiman Marcus, and she is showing me an outfit with an off white knee length skirt and a shimmery dark green long sleeve blouse. "Brooke, I can't help you. To me, you look fantastic in whatever you wear."

She pouts. "You're not much use for shopping, boyfriend."

"I know. But I am actually enjoying myself."

"I can see that. Care to explain?"

"Let me try. First, just being with you is a huge rush, specially if you're having fun."

"And I'm certainly having fun. Very nice, broody."

"Second, watching you try different outfits, I realized something. Your mood changes a little bit, depending on the clothes you're wearing. I've been trying to figure out the different moods and how they connect with the clothes."

"And how would you describe the effect of this outfit?"

"It seems to pull you in a bit. Quiet, a bit thoughtful, a little sweet. You could use that to have a serious conversation with somebody you like."

She gives me a broad dimpled smile. "Wow. That's pretty cool. You just made shopping with you ten times more fun. I'm looking for an outfit to go play pool with you tonight."

"I remember what you were wearing that first date of ours. Skinny jeans, and a black ribbed blouse with a huge button. Sexy, in an understated way, and playful. A little insecure."

"I was already falling for you, and I had no idea. So, do you have any suggestions?"

I thought a bit about it. "Playful and a little slutty. Tight jeans, boots and a form fitting pink tank top with a low neckline."

"You're not bad, boyfriend. Let's try that." She gives instructions to the woman who's waiting on her. She goes into the changing room and back out again.

"So?"

"It looks a little awkward."

"The cut on the jeans is not right." She goes in and out again. The jeans are now black, the boots a soft looking suede and the top a thin fabric, light purple tight under her breasts, but looser further up, with just a hint of cleavage."

"Wow. Playful and sexy, but not sluttish. Seems appropriate."

"I agree. Now we're going to visit the men's section."

It was a couple of hours, taking measurements and trying shoes and suits. She chose two suits, a charcoal Zegna and a navy Boss, shirts, slacks, a sports jacket, jeans, ties, shoes... She just gave them an address.

"All right, boyfriend, we're done."

"I can pay for my own clothes, Brooke Davis."

She gives me a small smile. "I know you can. Just allow me this little pleasure, please?"

I'm a little stung in my pride, but I'm not going to fight with her over this. "All right, sugar momma."

"No, boyfriend. You must understand. Neiman Marcus is one of my clients. I signed a supplier contract a couple of months ago, and they should have a Brooke Davis section in a couple of weeks. That twenty thousand dollar shopping spree, I'm paying for it at cost, and with inventory, which means it's actually costing me something like five thousand dollars."

"I can write you a check for five thousand."

"You can, but I'd rather you didn't."

"But..."

She raises both her hands. "Let me explain. My looks are part of the marketing of my business. I have to look sharp and on the moment. You're my boyfriend, so we're going to be seen together, and I need you to look like you belong there. I mean, you already look like a movie star, but I need you to dress like one too. You don't need a fancy wardrobe to be a small city cop, a basketball coach and a third parent for Jamie. For that, your clothes are, let's say, almost fine. So, these clothes are for me, and for my business. That's why I'm paying for them. Letting me do it and wearing them as I request is a favor you are doing to me, not me buying you in any way. Besides, I can't tell you how much I love doing it."

"You're right, pretty girl. I'm sorry. And thank you."

"We are going to a few fancy year-end parties in New York over the winter break. That's the Zegna. The Boss is for a normal night in town. Got it?"

"Of course. No tight pant legs, right? I need space for my ankle holster."

"You'll be carrying a concealed weapon in New York? I thought this was pretty much outlawed in the city."

"There is a federal statute allowing active-duty law enforcement personnel conceal-carry privileges pretty much anywhere. There are a few exceptions, like the passenger compartment of a commercial aircraft, but that's all. It's also understood that this statute carries a recommendation to always carry a weapon and to intervene appropriately if necessary."

"I have absolutely no problem with that. Quite the opposite."

"Really?" This is something we haven't discussed.

"I always felt safe with you. You're big, strong and very protective and that's a big deal for me. Now, you're all that, plus you're trained for action and you pack heat. What's not to like?"

I wave my head. "You are still capable of surprising me, Pretty Girl. I honestly thought it would make you uncomfortable."

"I know we still have a serious conversation about this job of yours in our future. In a way, it terrifies me, as last night's incident illustrates. But there is one thing nobody knows. In another life, I would have liked to be a cop. It's one of the reasons I like Maddie. I think it's an amazing calling, and it actually suits you."

I laugh. "You're the second person to tell me that today."

"Who was the first?"

"Maddie's dad Joe. Best cop in the world. He said I have the potential to be a great cop. I'm really conflicted about it, Brooke. I can't have both basketball and law enforcement in my future. I have to choose. And last night scared me."

"We'll talk about this, boyfriend. This, and everything else. But, tonight, we drink, and we play pool."

"You might find me a harder to beat this time."

"Care for a little bet?"


	11. Chapter 11

AN: Sorry for the long delay in updating. The song is "Lights down low" by Max Schneider. The poem is an excerpt from "I Sing the Body Electric", by Walt Whitman. I wonder if the bar scene crossed the line from "T" to "M" rating, and I'd love an opinion from my dear reviewers. As usual, I own nothing related to OTH, but Maddie is all mine.

Chapter 11

It's a nice, kinda upscale bar, with a couple of pool tables at the back. Like everyone else in this town, the people who run the place know Lucas, so they didn't even ask for ID. They just served us the beer and shots we asked for, while we played. Lucas left his guns and badge at home, explaining that alcohol and firearms don't mix, and that he was off the clock until the next evening, after the game.

A little over two years ago he was a sweet, gorgeous, overly serious boy I hardly knew. I took him to a bar just like this one, just for fun. I shamelessly seduced him. Got him drunk, snared him, marked him forever as mine.

I break out, but sink nothing, Lucas sinks a couple of balls. We go back and forth, and I begin to regain my old knack, but a bit late. Finally Lucas sinks the black ball, and I lose a game of pool. The first time since I was a kid. I look at him, and I see a little smile, as he downs a shot and sips his beer. I give him a challenging grin "Well, Broody. I owe you."

His eyes sweep me from head to toe, and I feel myself tingle just from his gaze. There is very little sweetness in his smile now. His blue eyes glint with mischief and desire. "That's right, Pretty Girl. How about... your panties."

Suddenly I wish I had chosen a skirt for tonight. With tight jeans and boots, he's given me a sexy little conundrum to unravel. But, a bet is a bet, and He is certainly entitled. I caress his cheek and slide my body against his, as I whisper. "Excellent choice. I'll be right back." I run to the girls room and come sautering back a few minutes later, purple lace thongs in hand.

He examines them, texture, looks, and finally he brings them to his nose. "Lovely in color, shape, texture and scent. And slightly wet. Not unlike the owner." He puts the panties in a back pocket of his pants.

What happened to my cheesy boyfriend, so lacking in game he was actually charming? This strong, self-possesed half stranger reminds me a bit of his father, except a thousand times sexier, and without the creepy oiliness. Was this amazing man always hiding inside that boy, waiting for maturity to reveal him? Or did somehow life invent this Lucas out of the rough draft from high school? He looks and behaves much older than his eighteen years. I'm pretty sure his jobs, coaching and police work, have forced him to mature fast. I've also been playing an adult role in the real world, and that has certainly changed me as well. I'm curious what he sees in me now. I suspect I haven't changed nearly as much as he did.

I decide to break the spell a little. "How are you doing, Broody?"

He thinks before answering. "I'm getting there, Pretty Girl. I was told to to drink and celebrate that my team saved a child's life today. Truth, I'm still a little freaked out. But you make it easy to forget."

I give him a soft kiss, letting my lips linger on his. "That's what I'm here for, Broody. Another game? Same terms?"

"Sure. I break this time."

For the second game, I'm back in the old form. Not only I can sink them like a pro, but I get into the groove of distracting him, either subtly, with a glance or a touch, or crudely, by rubbing my ass against the bulge in his pants. It's still a tight game. The tension between us is like a well-tuned violin string, and Lucas is putting on a great show of mind over matter, focusing on his game despite my distractions. He tries his hand at seduction too, rubbing my earlobe between his fingers, or sliding a finger softly down my arm. But in the teasing game, I hold most of the cards. My panties in his back pocket, and thinking about what I didn't have under my jeans certainly helps a bit too. This time I win.

He concedes with a smile, after I sink the eight ball. "Your game, Pretty Girl. You want them back?"

I'm besides myself with wanting him. "Absolutely not."

"Then what?"

There's only one thing for me right now. "You, me, girl's bathroom. Now."

The bar is empty enough that nobody notices us slipping together into the girl's room and locking the door. It's fairly clean, as far as bar bathrooms go, but there was no way I was taking my boots off again in here. So, I just unbutton my jeans and wiggle to lower them around my legs. Lucas has his wallet out, looking for a condom.

"Don't worry, Broody. I'm on the pill."

"Smart." He takes a second to stare at me, lightly touching my tattoo. "And sexy."

I unbutton his jeans, and, in one swift motion, I lower both his pants and his boxers. I grab his freed erection in one hand, as I grab his neck on the other for a kiss, sliding my tongue against his, while stroking him. I feel his long fingers sliding inside and stroking me, while both of us moan softly around our kiss. "Inside, Lucas. Now."

I turn around and press my palms against the wall, as he takes me from behind, kissing the back of my neck, and playing with my breasts under the top. I enjoy the sensation of fullness he gives me, before I begin to lose myself in the vortex of sensation coming from my center.. "Faster. Lucas." The orgasm approaches, and finally reaches out, from my core to the top of my head and my toes. My knees turn to jelly, but he holds me up. Surprisingly, he wasn't done yet. I turn around and squat.

I take him all the way to the root into my mouth. That's a skill I didn't have when we were younger. I love the surprise and the pleasure in his face, as I work him with my throat, tongue and lips, enjoying my own taste on him.. Soon I finish him off right down my throat.

We pull our pants up, and I slide my fingers though my hair and his, trying to disguise a bit what we've been up to. What neither one of us can hide is the matching pair of silly grins we have as we walk out of the bathroom. There's an annoyed blonde outside the restroom, but nobody else in the bar seems to have noticed our little escapade.

I ask him. "Another game?"

"No. I want to dance." He goes to the jukebox and puts on a slow song.

 _Heaven only knows where you've been._ _  
_ _But I don't really need to know._ _  
_ _I know where you're gonna go._

 _On my heart where you're resting your head._ _  
_ _And you just look so beautiful._ _  
_ _Just like you were an angel._

 _Can I stop the flow of time?_ _  
_ _Can I swim in your divine?_ _  
_ _'Cause I don't think I'd ever leave this place._

 _Oh._ _  
_ _Turn the lights, turn the lights down low._ _  
_ _Yeah._ _  
_ _Now I'm feeling you breathing slow._

 _'Cause, baby, we're just reckless kids_ _  
_ _Trying to find an island in the flood._ _  
_ _Oh._ _  
_ _Just turn the lights, turn the lights down low._ _  
_ _Oh._

 _Under heavy skies in the rain_ _  
_ _You're dancing in your bare feet_ _  
_ _Just like we're in a movie._

 _Grab my hand and we're chasing the train._ _  
_ _I catch you looking back at me_ _  
_ _Running through a cloud of steam._

 _Can I stop the flow of time?_ _  
_ _Can I swim in your divine?_ _  
_ _'Cause I don't think I'd ever leave this place._

 _Oh._ _  
_ _Turn the lights, turn the lights down low._ _  
_ _Yeah._ _  
_ _Now I'm feeling you breathing slow._

 _'Cause, baby, we're just reckless kids_ _  
_ _Trying to find an island in the flood._ _  
_ _Oh._ _  
_ _Turn the lights, turn the lights down low._

 _Moon light, mood lights, moves like J-Lo._ _  
_ _Tell me what you want from me._ _  
_ _I'll do it if you say so._ _  
_ _'Cause you're the only one for me._ _  
_ _I'm never gonna say "No"._ _  
_ _I found me an angel._ _  
_ _I can see it in your halo._ _  
_ _Have you ever dreamt of what we can do?_ _  
_ _Have you ever sent an "I love you"?_ _  
_ _I've never felt the feelings that I feel for you._ _  
_ _So, maybe we can make a "we" of "me" and "you"._ _  
_ _I'mma treat you right tonight._ _  
_ _Let's make it last forever._ _  
_ _I promise you that no one else will ever treat you better._ _  
_ _And if you don't believe me,_ _  
_ _Please see I don't need no effort._ _  
_ _All you gotta do is flip that switch before we bed up._ _  
_

He used to be a reluctant dancer, but he was always a great post-coital cuddler. I'm not really sure which one we are doing. It doesn't matter, though. It feels right as rain.

As I enjoy the afterglow of our bathroom quickie, and the feel of slowdancing with Brooke in my arms, I try to recall the strange places where we had sex in the past. Classrooms and broom closets at Tree Hill High, the boy's locker room at the gym, the beach, the Rivercourt, The cafe's deposit, a stranger's jacuzzi. I whisper in her ear. "Sex in odd places..." I can almost see the dimpled smile hidden against my chest.

When the song ends she pulls back a bit, still smiling. "Wanna get out of here, boyfriend?" I nod, and we walk out, hand in hand.

"Where now, Pretty Girl?"

"Some diner? I could have a bite."

"Let's go to Haley's place. I think she is on shift now."

"Perfect."

The place is called Main Street Diner, and it's got that fifties feel, of neon and red vinyl, with booths, tables and a long counter. The cook and half owner is Frank, a former baseball player, friendly and a damn good cook. Him and Haley are the only staff at that moment, and, when we get there, there's only a couple of occupied booths. Haley looks at us and gives a little squeal. "Tigger!", giving Brooke a hug.

I pretend to be hurt. "And what am I, chopped liver?"

"Green doesn't look good on you, bil."

I laugh. "That's ok. I missed you too, sis."

That gets me a hug too. "So kids, is this a social call, or do you want a bite to eat?"

"Eating would be good." I notice Frank looking at us from the kitchen window. "Hey, Frank! What's cooking?"

"Whatever you want, officer. Who's the knockout?"

"Meet Brooke Davis, former and current girlfriend, future mother of my children. Brooke, this is Frank Brewer, chef extraordinaire and part owner of this fine establishment."

Brooke actually blushes at my description and Frank's broad smile. "It's nice to meet you, Miss Davis."

"Frank comes out of the kitchen and shakes Brooke's hand. Hey, any friend of the Scotts is family here. How about some french toast, Karen style?"

Brooke just looks at him. "Karen style?"

"She's been here, and she's given Frank a few lessons. It's even on the menu."

"I would never say no to french toast Karen's style. It's nice to meet you, Frank."

"Make it french toast for two, Frank."

"Actually, make it for three. Those tables are done, I'm about to go off shift and I could use a bite too. Coffee, guys?"

"I'd prefer hot chocolate, and, I suspect, so would Brooke.."

Frank starts working on the hot chocolates behind the counter. "Lucas, how's Maddie doing? I heard about what happened."

"She'll be fine, Frank. She's on leave, spending some time with her father in California. She'll be back after the holiday."

"I'm glad to hear it. From what I hear, she is a hero, isn't she? We should throw her a parade."

"Damn right. She saved a couple of kids, at no small risk to herself."

"Please tell her I said hi."

"I will."

We sit at a booth, while Haley goes get the payment for the other customers and Frank brings us the hot chocolates.

Brooke smiles at Frank. "Thanks. You know, Frank. I'm amazed how much everybody in this town seems to care for Lucas and Maddie. I mean, I know they are great..."

He interrupts her. "Miss Davis." She stops and looks at him. "Before these two started working for the Sheriff, Clarkson was a scared little town. We had a serial rapist running loose, and, what's worse, the Sheriff and his men seemed totally lost. These two kids caught the rapist and then they put our Sheriff's Department in order. Everybody feels safer knowing they are around."

"I know what you mean. I was there when they caught the rapist. They are pretty amazing."

"You know, I can see the two of you look right together, but you don't hurt the little blondie, you hear me? The whole town was sorry when you and Maddie split up."

Haley comes back and sits with us. "These two belong together, Frank. And Maddie brought them back. She's really happy about it."

"You sure?"

"Yes I'm sure."

Frank smiles at Haley. "All right, Haley girl. I believe you. I'll be right back with y'all's french toast."

"Thanks, Tutormom."

"Frank is the biggest gossip in town, Tigger. I'm sure he will put to rest any rumors that you're an evil witch that broke up the town's sweetheart couple."

"Well, I did, didn't I?"

"No, Pretty Girl. You may have affected the timetable, but not the outcome. And honestly, both Maddie and I thought sooner was better than later."

"Hey, don't look at me, Tigger. I never understood how Maddie could be such a Brucas shipper, but she really is. I like Maddie, but I have no clue about what goes on inside that girl's mind."

I smile, thinking of Maddie, and both Brooke and Haley frown at me. "What, boyfriend? Do you know what goes on inside that girl's head?"

"That's the mistake, Pretty Girl. You two think of Maddie as a girl. Actually, she is mostly a girl-shaped boy. She sees her feelings as something separate from herself, as most boys do, and she is able to compartmentalize."

"That's a strange thought." Brooke nods in agreement.

"And how did the romance between a boy and a girl-shaped boy worked out for you, bil?"

I look at Brooke, but she seems as interested in the topic as Haley. "Maddie thinks that I am a bit of a boy-shaped lesbian girl."

Brooke guffaws, and Haley just looks amused. "She is certainly creative, Broody."

"I don't think she is wrong. I've certainly grown comfortable with the idea." I look at Brooke. "Does it bother you?"

She smiles. "You are who you are, Broody. I don't need a label. We have an amazing amount of fun together, and I'm not just talking sex. I can't imagine having that with any other boy. So maybe Maddie is onto something."

"I agree. I couldn't imagine being best friends with any other boy."

"I wish you liked shopping, though."

I deadpan. "I suspect my inner dyke is a basketball-playing tomboy."

Now we all laugh, as Frank brings out our french toast.

We walk Haley to her car and say goodbye. We get in the car and head home.

We do the ten minute drive in silence, and, when we get in, Brooke sits on the couch and I sit on the floor in front of her. I take off her heels and start giving her a foot rub.

"Hmmm. Broody."

"Pretty Girl."

"Would you mind talking more about Maddie? Would she mind?"

"I wouldn't mind, and she would demand that I be honest and forthcoming."

"There. Right there. Ahh. You're so good at this."

"Glad to be of service, Pretty Girl."

She closes her eyes and enjoys the massage for a bit. Then she opens her eyes again.

"There was a lot more to the two of you than a romantic relationship, wasn't there?"

I smile at her. "Let me put things this way. Giving up on the romance and the sex left most of what

we had still there."

She thinks about it for a bit. Then we change places, I help her remove my boots and she begins to give me a foot rub. "Will you be jealous of the guys in her life?"

"Not really. I will be a little jealous of the professional partners, man or women, that she gets after me. She is a rock, Brooke. I feel safe in scary situations with her besides me."

"You talked. I mean, you opened up to her."

"Yes. She is smart, brutally honest and without malice. But the key thing between us is that we don't need to talk. We've done tactics training at a facility about two hours from here. The instructors say we have better coordination than pairs that have been together for a decade. When we work together, it's like two bodies with one brain." She hits just the right spot. "Ohh, girl. I've missed this."

She does a deep massage in my calf that feels like I've died and went to heaven. "I've seen the two bodies and a brain thing. I feel it when we are together, the three of us. Like you two are two pieces of one person."

She switches foot. "Does it make you uncomfortable? Jealous?"

"A little envious, actually. I wonder what it feels like. But I wouldn't want to be like that with you."

"Why? I imagine after a few years together it will be like that with us too. I've seen it occasionally with married couples. It just came sort of instantly with Maddie."

The tip of her tongue appears in the corner of her mouth, as she focuses on what she is doing. So sexy, even when she is not playing it up. She looks into my eyes and continues talking. "There is no tension, no visible spark between the two of you. We are almost the opposite. I like it how electric it is between the two of us. I hope we never lose it."

"I sincerely doubt that."

She massages the other calf. "I'm sure you and Maddie were great in bed, though."

"Do you really want to know?"

She blushes and looks a little sheepish. "I'm curious, and not in an entirely innocent way. But you can leave the details for later."

"You surprise me, Brooke Davis. Let me just say this. Whatever spark Maddie and I had only really showed up between four walls. It was always a joy to see Maddie let herself come out and play. It was fun, and sweet, and really, really sexy. But it was never the bonfire we have between us."

We get up and head to the bedroom. I undress, take a piss, brush my teeth and lie down in bed just in my boxers.. I pick up a faded book of collected poetry and read, waiting for my beloved.

She comes out without make up, hair loose, wearing just an old t-shirt of mine, a dimpled smile in her face. "Read me something, Broody."

"All right." I chase down a specific poem in the book.

 _"... This is the female form,_

 _A divine nimbus exhales from it from head to foot,_

 _It attracts with fierce undeniable attraction,_

 _I am drawn by its breath as if I were no more than a helpless vapor, all falls aside but myself and it,_

 _Books, art, religion, time, the visible and solid earth, and what was expected of heaven or fear'd of hell, are now consumed,_

 _Mad filaments, ungovernable shoots play out of it, the response likewise ungovernable,_

 _Hair, bosom, hips, bend of legs, negligent falling hands all diffused, mine too diffused,_

 _Ebb stung by the flow and flow stung by the ebb, love-flesh swelling and deliciously aching,_

 _Limitless limpid jets of love hot and enormous, quivering jelly of love, white-blow and delirious juice,_

 _Bridegroom night of love working surely and softly into the prostrate dawn,_

 _Undulating into the willing and yielding day,_

 _Lost in the cleave of the clasping and sweet-flesh'd day._

 _..."_

"Thank you, Broody. Your male form looks pretty nice too."

She straddles me, and I sit up. We get into a deep kiss that seems to last forever. "I love you, Pretty Girl."

"I love you too, Boyfriend." Suddenly, she stops and looks at me.

"What is it, Brooke?"

"If I hadn't come into the picture, you two would still be together." Brooke doesn't feel threatened by Maddie, which is a surprise, but she does feel guilty for breaking us up.

I sit up beside her, as she puts her hands behind her head and stays lying down. The motion perks up her already perky breasts.

"I'll try to answer honestly, but this is a bit distracting."

She giggles. "Just an incentive to be brief, Broody. They are all yours afterwards."

I laugh, and lightly caress a nipple, watching it harden.

"I'm not sure it we'd still be together. Keeping both the professional and the personal relationships going was not a good idea. What happened last night is a good example. Maddie took a low risk gamble with her own safety in order to protect those children. This is part of the job. If I was there could I take the same split-second gamble with her life? Could I keep it together if it all went south? Adding a romantic relationship to these situations just makes things more complicated and dangerous. If I was offered a choice between keeping the partner or the girlfriend, I would have hesitated a lot, but I would have kept the partner. Mainly because Maddie wouldn't hesitate at all. I think we were coming close to this choice when you came into the picture."

"I see."

I caress the other nipple. "So do I. Actually, I have a question."

"What?"

"Why don't you feel threatened by Maddie? "

Brooke smiles. "I've been asking myself this same question since the night we got back together. I have no idea why. If I ever find out, you'll be the first one I tell, deal?"

"Deal. Can we stop talking about Maddie now?"


End file.
